4 Easy Ways How to Track an IP Address

You have probably seen people on TV and in movies tracing a specific IP address to find someone’s location. Even though it looks easy, you might be thinking that IP tracking takes special skills, or you have to be a blacklist hacker to do it. Well, it does not. It is actually quite easy to learn how to track an IP address.

What is an IP Address?

IP stands for “internet protocol,” and it’s a unique identifier for each device connected to the internet or a local network. The IP address allows information to be sent from one location to another through a network (a.k.a. internet traffic). The internet is a vast place, so these IP addresses allow each device to communicate with other devices. In addition, IP addresses contain location information to differentiate each specific connection. 

An IP address is made up of four numbers separated by periods. For example, an address on a local network might look like 192.158.1.45, and one on the internet may look like 155.54.250.22. Each number is allowed a range between 0 and 255. Other IP addresses like IPV4 and IPV6 will look different.

Each IP address is mathematically created by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), which is a division of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). According to Kaspersky Labs, “ICANN is a non-profit organization that was established in the United States in 1998 to help maintain the security of the internet and allow it to be usable by all. Each time anyone registers a domain on the internet, they go through a domain name registrar, who pays a small fee to ICANN to register the domain.”

Keep in mind that each person connected to the internet will have a private and public IP address. Private IP addresses only work within the user’s local network. Public IP addresses are used on the internet and are viewable and searchable unless you use a VPN.

There are two types of public IP addresses, dynamic and static. A dynamic IP address is assigned every time you reboot your router/modem and may change frequently. A static IP address stays the same no matter how many times you disconnect and reconnect to your internet provider. It is a solid, static IP address assigned to you for the duration of your service. Most consumers have dynamic IP addresses.

How to Track an IP Address

Data traveling over the internet may make a few stops along the way. Therefore, the route is not always direct. When learning how to track an IP address, you need to understand that you can generally learn where the IP address originated, but if the owner is using a VPN, their IP address may be masked.

Below are some methods to help you learn how to trace an IP address.

1. Using Command Prompt

On a Windows computer, press the Windows key and type in cmd to get to the command prompt. Next, click ok to run the program. Once you see the black screen, type in “ping” followed by the website address you are trying to trace. This will give you the IP address. If you have it already, you can skip this step.

How to Find a Person’s IP Address Using Command Prompt

Now type in “tracert” followed by the IP address. This is known as a traceroute. You will see the entire route between your location and the IP address you are tracing.

2. Use an IP Lookup Tool

You can also use a tool like WhatIsMyIPAddress to track an IP address and find someone’s exact location. This free tool will show you the hostname, ASN, ISP, DNS, organization, and where the IP is located (Google Maps coordinates).

How to Trace an IP Address Using Third-Party Apps

Another IP lookup tool is Spiceworks. It works the same as WhatIs MyIPAdress. To use it, simply enter the IP address that you are tracing into the search box and click “search” to see the results.

Other IP lookup tools like InfoTracer work very well at finding someone’s information, location, along with other details based on the user’s IP address like their name, phone number, social media accounts, and much more.

3. Using WolframAlpha

Visit the website: Wolfram|Alpha: Computational Intelligence . Click on the search bar and type in the IP address you want to trace. Press the Enter key to initiate the trace. The results will show the company or person’s name, who owns the IP, the ISP (internet service provider), device type (e.g., Android phone), and geolocation (city). You can also click the “More” button to see additional IP address information. Along with someone’s geographic location, when you track IP addresses, you can see their timezone and other details.

4. Track an IP Address from Email

Many of us receive unsolicited emails from questionable sources. You can use that email to trace an IP address and find out where it came from. Regardless of whether you use a Windows PC or a Mac, Gmail, or some other email program, it works the same. You can view the information from a mobile device using Wi-Fi or a hard-wired computer.

Open the email on your computer and find the options menu. Look for a menu option that says view “raw source,” “open raw email,” or “view original.” On your screen, you will see the raw details of the path the email took to get to you. Within the email header code, you will see various email addresses. Check each one using one of the trace IP address tools above, and you can find out where the email originated unless the user is obscuring their location with a VPN or proxy server to enhance their online privacy.