Your ISP and You
In his book "How to be Invisible", J.J. Luna says this starting on page
213:begin quote
Your Internet Service Provider
The moment you sign up for an Internet account, your invisibility begins to fade. At the [US] government's request, every Internet Service Provider (ISP) must furnish -- with no advance notice to you -- the following information about your account:- The name you gave them, and the address where the bills are
sent.
- Records of your Internet sessions (including session times
and duration).
- Your telephone number or other subscriber account
identifying number(s); including any Internet or network addresses
assigned to you.
- The source of your payments, including any credit card or bank account numbers.
- The content of, and other records relating to, your
electronic mail messages, including attachments.
Can you get by with a false name,
a P.O. box address, and pay the bills by money order? Yes . . .
but if the government ever decides to go after you, the ISP will be
forced to give up the source of your connections -- the telephone line
that leads straight to your office or home.
ISP Alternative
You might consider setting up an account under another name with a cellular provider that offers wireless Internet access. Then get a national ISP, and have the bills sent to a ghost address (an address at which you receive mail but cannot be traced to you) in Canada. When you call in, choose a city on the opposite coast from where you are located. This will be expensive, but if money is not a problem, then you will certainly be able to confuse anyone attempting to track you down.end quote
Luna, J.J., "How to be Invisible: the essential guide to protecting your personal privacy, your assets, and your life", Thomas Dunne Books, 2004.
If you are reading this page, then you need that book -- obviously.
Laws in countries other than the USA surely vary, but are probably worse.
Note:
- Proxy servers can make you anonymous to the sites you visit, but not to your ISP!!!
- Proxy severs keep nothing from your ISP!!!
- If the government or a court order forces the ISP to turn over its records on you, your ISP will do so -- including records showing that you surfed through proxy servers!!!
ISP's have one redeeming feature: they are in business, and if word got out that they they were snitching on their customers, most would instantly switch to the competition en masse. So in all probability, your ISP will divulge everything about you only if forced to do so by the government or by a court order.
Can you sleep better now?
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