4 ms·
Ask HN: How does Reddit suggest local ads despite disabled location access?
- mplanchard 5y agoProbably your IP address
- seesawtron 5y agoWouldn't disabling location essentially block the app from getting the IP address?
- yuppie_scum 5y agoNo. A web server (or firewall or orchestrator overlay network or whatever) absolutely knows what IP address is connecting to it. It has to send data back to it. Pretty basic TCP/IP stack stuff. Now you could use a VPN but that would just resolve as the VPN’s IP address.
- greenyoda 5y agoFor more detail, here's the layout of an IP (v4) packet, which shows that it contains the source and destination IP addresses: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPv4#Header https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPv4#Header (IP is the communication protocol layer below TCP, which is below HTTP.)
- Mountain_Skies 5y agoI went to tiktok one day and was confused why there were suddenly so many videos featuring Canadians. Then I realized I was connected to a VPN with an exit node in Toronto. At least I got a better understanding of how tiktok customizes content.
- new_guy 5y agoAS well as the IP address, maybe if you visit subs local to your geographic region they'll use that as a signal too.
- simonblack 5y agoYou have no privacy on the Internet. Your machine has its own IP address whenever you are using it, otherwise how would that website know where to send that webpage to? All the routers along the way know both the website's source IP and your destination IP of every packet that goes through them from website to you. Surveillance is simple, they just look at those IP addresses and the contents of the packet. You are being recorded with every packet of information you use. That just the way the Internet works. If you don't like it, don't use the Internet at all. :)