Can Your Computer Be Seen on the Internet?

Have you ever wondered if your computer may be "visible" from the outside world, meaning whether it could get hacked into?

Here is a relatively easy way to answer the question "Is my computer visible on the internet?"

I recommend that you print these instructions before you go to Gibson Research's web site. Once you are there please click the Services menu and there choose Shields Up. You will see:

Click on the text Shields Up (do you see the little cursor on the "s" of Shields?). You will come to a page where you find this text:

 

Click again on the text ShieldsUP! (do you see the little cursor?). You should get something like this:

 

For privacy reasons I have partially obscured my computer's IP address.
Click on Proceed and you will be on a page with this big button:

 

Click on the big orange button and you will (finally!) get what you were looking for in the first place:

Again, for privacy reasons I have partially obscured my computer's IP address. The text in the green box is what you want to see.

What to do if there is anything else but this green box and text? It gets so technical that I recommend you call me or send me an email. One contact email address is in the left side bar at the end of the "Welcome" text and my customers all have my email address anyway.

I know this seems to be a lot of steps and hassle to get to the result. All this totally depends on the history of how Gibson Research's web site was built and grew over time. I think it's well worth the few steps to know with some certainty that one's computer can not easily be seen on the internet.   

As usual I welcome comments and suggestions right here in the blog. Thank you in advance.

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