I recently read about I.P. addresses and it said that your I.P address could be traced to your actual HOME address. Is that true ? If not, does it give the city where you are in ?
There are far more expert people on here than I am about this, but my understanding is that that is kinda true if your ISP is cooperative. A VPN makes that more difficult.
In most cases, yes. If you want to know if yours can, visit WhatIsMyIPAddress.com and see for yourself. In my case, it thinks I'm in Skowhegan, Maine, more than a hundred miles from Millinocket, where I live, but this is because I have cable Internet access, and the cable company is based in Skowhegan. However, I have come across sites that were able to track my IP down to Millinocket. Someone who knows what they're doing and has what they need to do it can probably track your IP down to your house. A VPN might be able to hide you, though.
As a fan of the show Criminal Minds, I've learned that Penelope Garcia can track down anyone anywhere on her computer(s) down to the square inch. And she can do it in about 5 seconds!
Like so much of that show, that is/was not true. NCIS and the spin-offs do that to. I am sure if the NSA wanted to find you, they could, but it wouldn't be done in seconds; minutes perhaps.
I don't remember now how I did this, but when I had internet service through DSL, I traced my IP address to one of those green outdoor pedestal boxes. But it was not the closest one. Maybe just a wild guess.
Actually, I was exaggerating. If she can't do it immediately she usually says something like,"I'm going to need a couple hours for a work-around:" or "I'll hit you back when I find something".
I think the entire show could have been one agent and Garcia doing the work. Hotchner could say, "Garcia, give the the address where the unsub is hiding, how many people are there and what weapons do they have?". That would be followed by one or two psychologists charging in ahead of a fully-decked-out SWAT team with their vests and 9mm handguns to take down the bad guys or gals.
Those are the phone switching stations. If you were not within X Feet of one, you could not get DSL service because the signal wouldn't carry to your house.
It amazes me that the BAU was able to accomplish anything at all prior to Garcia being there. There would be a lot more unsolved cases, that's for sure!
Before this thread gets moved to the TV series section, let me redirect it back to the question posed in the OP. I recently read about I.P. addresses and it said that your I.P address could be traced to your actual HOME address. Is that true ? No, unless a hacker can access the ISP (internet service provider) data base. Your IP can only be traced back to your ISP and only their info can be seen. My IP shows me in a different state than my actual state of residence. Only law enforcement can get your info and only with a court order, IE a subpoena or warrant. However, I bet the FBI or Secret Service can get that info without a court order, so if our Richard is "Richie the Baker" and wanted by the FBI, I would say his location is already pinpointed in Mexico. Also our @Beth Gallagher looks a lot like Penelope Garcia on Criminal Minds. Her computer expertise just adds to my suspicions. I am beginning to piece together a senior conspiracy more vast than I once suspected. Even our admin, based on his photos, is a master of disguise. No one can accuse me of covering up.