A commonly asked question/request is how to hide your Internet Protocol (IP) address from other users. There are a few methods to do this which are covered below:

Usermodes

Some networks have a usermode that will hide your IP address. 99% of the time this will be usermode +x - Some of the more popular networks that support this mode are Quakenet, Undernet and GameSurge. You need to register an account with those networks, then login and then use /mode your-nickname +x where a default network vhost will be set on you. This hides your IP address from normal users but IRC Operators will still be able to see your IP in your /whois.

Be aware that some networks automatically hide your hostname/IP when you connect to their network by covering portions up with random letters/numbers.

To check whether or not your network supports +x or some other service that hides your IP, ask in the #Help channel (or equivalent) of the network you use. You may also want to check out the network's website. If you don't know the network's website, search Google. A list of some networks which support hostmask hiding can be found here.

Bouncers

A bouncer (BNC) is a way to 'bounce' your connection to the IRC server - so in basic terms you connect to a host and the host connects you to the IRC server. By this you are using another machines IP and not your own. You also can use a 'virtual host' (vhost, also known as 'vanity host') if the host allows, which are the hostnames you see around IRC that look like sentences (i.e. 'this.is.my-leet.vhost.com').

Alternatively if you have a PsyBNC hosted on a shell account more features are open to you. This enables you to be able to be online 24/7 even when your computer is off or you are not connected to IRC. PsyBNC also supports SSL connections. Further information about PsyBNC is available here. Shell accounts invariably costs money and, depending on the quality of the service you want, can cost quite a lot. There is a list of shell providers here. You may also be interested in ZNC. Do note they are in no way associated with mIRC, and there are risks when sending money via the Internet.

Proxies

You can connect to IRC through a proxy. You can set up a proxy with mIRC in mIRC's firewall section of the options dialog - ALT+O > Connect > Firewall. See this page for indepth help and information on proxies in conjunction with mIRC/IRC. Do note that most servers nowadays will scan you for "open" proxies (explained on the aforementioned page) and will automatically ban you if you're connecting with one.

Further technical information about proxy servers and abuse from proxies can be found here.

This is the least recommended way of hiding your IP address on IRC and should not be attempted unless you know what you're doing.

If you have further recommendations or ideas that would be useful for this thread, please send me a private message.

Last edited by Mentality; 21/12/12 04:59 PM.
Mentality/Chris