If I change my nickname on IRC, will they still know who I am because I have the same IP as before? reddit / irc ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [deleted] · 2016-06-01 13:46 [deleted] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- NeuroG · 2016-06-01 14:22 > Does the irc network keep track of all nicknames that every IP has used? Or maybe some irc clients do? Clients certainly can -some blocking scripts are smart enough to continue blocking someone based on IP even when they change nick. > How can someones IP be used in DOXING attacks? Every website records (at least temporarily) the IP of it's visitors, so if an attacker has access to some other website that you have logged into with that same IP address, they can correlate the two. I suggest using a host mask cloak, an IRC Bouncer, Proxy, or VPN when using IRC. Many IRC networks provide host masks for free, but they are the least secure way to hide your IP from other participants. Note that if you use a VPN for both IRC and web browsing, they will again be using the same IP, **but** that IP will be shared with dozens or hundreds of other people, so correlation isn't likely. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [deleted] · 2016-06-01 14:30 [deleted] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- NeuroG · 2016-06-01 14:46 > I've read that many networks ban people that are using proxies/vpn but I haven't read that about irc bouncers. They block **open** proxies. I pay for a VPN (PIA) because it's also useful for getting around censorship, improves privacy due to the shared IP, and makes using open-WiFi access points far more secure. > IRC bouncers seem the cheapest and best way to protect identity? Bouncers are cheap, and provided free* in some cases, but single- purpose. They also allow you to stay on-line when your computer or phone is off-line. You can also do the same thing with a client like weechat running on a vps somewhere that you connect to when you like. You can also use TOR on many networks -it's free, but you usually have to register your nick while connected without TOR. > Also, it sounds like very difficult to do a DOXING attack? They would have to hack the website I've visited to get the IP? There may be other ways to find your identity from an IP address. Some websites, like Wikipedia, publish IPs from anonymous posters (the content of which can be used to try to figure out someone's identity). It's not particularly easy to figure out someones identity from an IP address, but it is something people often consider privileged information. > Do you know any clients that keep track of which nicknames every IP has had? Not explicitly like that. Nevertheless, if you do have someone actively trying to DOX you, I'd suggest getting a new IP for your browsing going forward -it will make much harder for them. edit: > Can you use OTR if you are using a ZNC bouncer? OTR is entirely done by the client, so a bouncer *shouldn't* interfere with it. You *may* run into issues if your contact sends you a bunch of messages while your client is off-line as his OTR ratchet will keep going, but I've never done that, so I don't know. edit2: *For example: Snoonet and Geekshed provide free bouncers for their networks: https://snoonet.org/bnc https://www.geekshed.net/bnc/ Tor with Freenode: https://freenode.net/news/connecting-to-freenode- using-tor-sasl If you are worried about DOXING, take a look at the EFF surveilance self-defense guide: https://ssd.eff.org/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- fishfacecakes · 2016-06-02 13:12 For what it's worth, ZNC has an [OTR plugin](http://wiki.znc.in/Otr)