An IP address, or Internet Protocol address, is a unique address that certain electronic devices use to communicate with each other through a network. A typical IP address looks like this: 127.72.16.137. IP addresses are used to identify computers on the Internet. They can be compared to a street address or phone number. In essence, an IP address is basically a computer address used to identify specific computers.
Because of IP addresses, a computer can be uniquely identified for different purposes. IP addresses, for example, provide an easy and convenient method for identifying individual computers. Internet Service Providers rely heavily on IP addresses to identify and track customer's computers.
This use of the Internet Protocol address brings up issues of consumer rights. If the user's IP address can be identified, how is his/her privacy protected? Does this infringe on personal rights and invade privacy?
Some people believe that the use of IP addresses to identify certain computers is morally wrong as it invades privacy. However, IP addresses are very necessary because not only do they identify each unique computer, they can also track certain activities being done on the Internet. This practice will reduce the occurrence of many Internet crimes.
The spread of computer viruses is a huge and growing problem for the Internet community. Computer viruses can wreak havoc and cause irreversible harm to computers. Aside from hindering PC performance, they can ruin hard drives and destroy data that is stored on it. With the use of IP addresses, the origins of these computer viruses can be more easily tracked and the person who wrote the virus script can be appropriately punished.
Another useful function of Internet Protocol addresses is in the use of online wikis. Wikis are websites that can be directly changed or edited by anyone. Wikipedia is the most popular wiki, and without the use of IP addresses, it probably would not exist. Because of the fact that anyone can edit wikis, spam and vandalism can be a huge problem, because anyone can delete or change an article on Wikipedia. But with the use of IP addresses, an administrator can block a certain IP address from editing the article.
IP addresses are very necessary for today’s Internet community. They provide a source of identification among computer users and a way to track the source of problems in online networks. We sacrifice some anonymity for a sense of security with the use of IP addresses.
