How to Hide Your IP Address in 2024: Practical Advice

Your main goal is probably to ensure your web activities remain private. When you’re exploring the internet, your dedicated IP address is employed for monitoring everything you do. When you hide that address, you stop sites, advertisers, and other platforms from gathering information about your internet behavior.

Hiding IP address will do wonders for improving your web security. Hackers and various harmful malware constantly try to find weaknesses in your system via IP addresses and this way you’ll make it a lot harder for them to locate you.

surfshark logo
While there are different ways you can go about hiding the IP address, using a VPN provider is the optimal solution. Surfshark VPN is my go-to solution to this problem. It lets you pick from countless IPs from more than 100 countries while hiding the fact that you’re employing a VPN in the first place.

What’s an IP Address?

whats an ip address

An IP (Internet Protocol) address is represented by a sequence of numbers associated with a specific device that is connected to a digital network, which employs Internet Protocol for communication. Such addresses were designed with two goals in mind:

Firstly, they act as host or device identifiers. They ensure the connected device has a unique value assigned to it. Similar to how phone numbers are attached to specific smartphones, IP addresses help ensure all devices connected to a network are properly marked.

The second goal is Routing. IP addresses are essential for routing data packages across the web. Whenever you transfer data (for instance, want to see a webpage or send an email), it’s divided into packages, and such packages are routed from the device to the required server based on the IP address. Routers look at the destination IP address to figure out the optimal path for each specific data package.

Best Ways to Hide Your IP Address

To block IP address on iPhone or other devices, there are multiple methods you can use, but the simplest and most effective one is to employ a VPN (virtual private network). It’s also a budget-friendly solution.

1. VPNs - Safeguard Your Online Privacy

whats a vpn

VPNs (short for Virtual Private Networks) are great at masking IP address Mac, Windows, Android, or iOS devices, swapping it for either a dedicated address that is used by several people, or a dynamic IP that is changed with every new connection. Your ISP can only detect the replaced IP value and not your device’s actual address.

2. Tor Browser - Anonymity at Your Fingertips

whats a tor browser

Users from all around the globe rely on Tor to find and purchase various goods and chat with other people who have restricted web access due to living in certain countries. Similar to popular regular browsers, Tor is a free application that you can install onto your PC and use to hide your IP address each time you want to browse the internet.

This browser is protected with top-tier encryption that ensures your data is properly secured. Sadly, Tor isn’t exactly known for its speed. If you want to increase the level of received protection even higher, consider using a VPN for Tor.

3. Proxy Server - Unlock Content and Bypass Restrictions

whats a proxy server

You can employ a proxy server to reroute a browser and have it bypass the content restrictions imposed by an organization, school, or other entity.

Using a free proxy to block IP address iPhone or other devices is rather risky since it can lower your internet speed, violate your company’s policies, be run on a compromised system, or even be completely illegal in your country.

4. Use Public WiFi - Concealing Your IP on the Go

whats a public wifi

An IP address doesn’t follow you wherever you go. Meaning, that if you just visit a café, library, or some resort and use their WiFi, you’ll already manage to iPhone hide IP address. Why? Because the IP that will be assigned to your connection is the one provided by the WiFi network. Additionally, you can consider taking advantage VPNS for public WIFI to ensure better security when using unverified networks.

VPNs to Hide Your IP From Anywhere

This brief overview below will help you pick the optimal provider that offers secure data encryption and a broad server network.

Surfshark VPN

Strong Encryption
  • Impressive security functionality
  • Available across different platforms
  • Unrestricted number of simultaneous connections
  • Superfast servers
  • Not a lot of available audit information

Verdict: Surfshark provides cutting-edge security tools like AES-256 encryption, a kill switch, DNS leak protection, and a dependable zero-logs policy, meaning your web activities aren’t being recorded. It also lets you connect as many devices as you need at the same time while only paying for one subscription, which is a huge benefit to large households.

Surfshark provides an enormous selection of servers spread across the entire globe, ensuring you get the speed you need for streaming, downloading, or just surfing the web. This provider is often used for bypassing geo-restrictions and watching content on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and BBC iPlayer, making it the perfect option for streaming fans.

surfshark vpn interface

ExpressVPN

Blazing-Fast Connection Speeds
  • Impressive security functionality
  • Expansive server network
  • Superfast servers
  • Available on multiple platforms
  • Expensive
  • Restricted number of connections

Verdict: ExpressVPN is a cheap VPN that also allows you to hide your IP address. It can even help battle deep packet inspection (DPI) – an advanced blocking technology capable of recognizing VPN usage. Such technology is used by schools, colleges, and even entire countries like China. Whenever ExpressVPN encounters DPI, it ensures your outgoing connection is scrambled even more to guarantee it doesn’t get detected and marked as a VPN.

RAM-based servers automatically delete all your data when rebooted. Meanwhile, leak protection serves to guarantee your IP address isn’t uncovered no matter what happens. Lastly, the kill switch preserves your privacy should you suddenly lose your VPN connection.

express vpn interface

CyberGhost

Specialized Servers for Streaming
  • Reliable security tools
  • Intuitive UI
  • Huge collection of servers
  • Supports all popular platforms
  • Inconsistent speed
  • Doesn’t allow choosing a static IP address

Verdict: The NoSpy servers offer impeccable protection and are stored at CyberGhost’s private data center, ensuring only the company’s verified staff has access to them. Most providers rent servers that are kept in shared facilities, meaning there’s a higher risk of outside interference.

CyberGhost is another popular VPN for streaming, as its servers are well suited for accessing streaming platforms located in different countries. For instance, the Disney Plus US server assigns a US IP address to your device, ensuring you can freely view all previously restricted content.

This VPN provider performs constant server maintenance to ensure your access remains uninterrupted and you can also enjoy the benefit of P2P downloading servers.

cyberghost interface

FAQ

  • • Is it against the law to hide my IP address?

No, you are perfectly within your rights to hide your IP address. That said, the legality of your specific online activities remains the same whether you’re hiding your IP or not. For example, obtaining copyrighted assets or performing illicit activities is still against the law no matter what method you’re using.

  • • Is it recommended to hide the IP address when torrenting?

It’s usually a good idea to hide your IP when downloading torrent files since the torrent software ordinarily makes your address detectable to all users in the same torrent swarm. If you hide your IP address, you’ll make it harder for malicious actors to monitor your activities and access your data.

  • • Is turning on Incognito Mode enough to hide my IP address?

No, browsing the web in Incognito Mode does nothing to preserve the anonymity of your IP address. This mode simply disables the recording of your surfing history, cookies, and website data. Meanwhile, the IP address is still known to sites, network administrators, and possible hackers.

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