Share this article
Improve this guide
How to hide IP address on Local Area Network
Use tested methods to hide your IP for total privacy on LAN
7 min. read
Updated onOctober 4, 2023
updated onOctober 4, 2023
Share this article
Improve this guide
Read our disclosure page to find out how can you help Windows Report sustain the editorial teamRead more
Key notes
There’s a thin line between a technological paranoia of online surveillance and the real reasons you need to worry about your privacy while roaming online.
Things have changed, and not for the good in the privacy department, so we, users, need to take matters into our own hands and protect ourselves. Hiding your IP address on both LAN or Wi-Fi, trusted or public networks is the first step on the long road of onlineanonymity.
We already covered a lot of privacy-sensitive subjects, and today is the day reserved for LAN. Local Area Network or LAN is usually the safest, fastest way to access the internet.
However, there are still valid reasons why one would want to hide theirIP addresswhile surfing online, or creating, accessing, and downloading content.
We made sure to explain everything while focusing on the best ways to hide yourIP address. Make sure to check out those in the continuation of the article.
World-class 24/7 support with 83% for a 3 years plan and 3 months free.
Amazing connection speed with 35% off and 3 months free for the 1-year plan.
Best security protocols with 83% off and 2 months free for a 2-year plan.
Why should you hide your IP address on LAN?
In comparison to, let’s say public Wi-Fi networks, Local Area Network (wired internet connection) is much safer, faster, and more reliable. Nonetheless, don’t let that undermine the fact that hiding IP is still something you should seriously take into consideration.
You’re indeed less exposed to hackers, but there are still more than enough arguments to hide yourIP addresswhile using the trusted home network.
Here are the most common reasons why one would want to hideIP addresseven with the modestly-secure Local Area Network:
Ten years ago thisIP addresstweaks didn’t have too much importance but in the current meta-state of the World Wide Web, things work in a different manner.
Censorship, hand-loose ISPs with access to your browsing history that’s later sold to the highest bidder, government privacy infringements, content elitism, etc. It seems that the only way to fight it is to turn to one of the steps we provided below.
How can I hide my IP address while using Local Area Network?
1. Use VPN tools
Most certainly the easiest or, at least, the most reliable and user-friendly way to stayanonymousonline is usingVPNs(Virtual Private Networks).
Imagine aVPNas a mediator between you and the internet. Once active,VPNwill let you change your nativeIP addresswith one of the many others available around the world.
Therefore, they mask yourIP addressand replace it with an alternative of your choice. Besides that, some of theVPNsolutions offerencryptionand extra features, but we reckon that the main differences rest between free and premium options.
Speed differences and server availability are the key differences between paid and free-of-charge solutions.For those who want real online privacy,VPNs are certainly worthwhile.
VPN clients offer easy-to-use, intuitive apps. You don’t have to be in the know to configure and use one. One of the best VPNs out there that offer high-quality servers and a simple setup isExpressVPN.
Putting your privacy first, ExpressVPN comes packed with numerous features designed to anonymize your browsing and keep your traffic secure and encrypted as well as your data monitoring-free.
One of its most convenient features for this job is the IP cloaking function that hides your location and replaces it with an IP from its impressive network of worldwide placed gateways.
Make sure you enable the kill switch that prevents your IP from being exposed in case of the connection drops down and also pay attention to the records policy.
ExpressVPN
2. Use Proxy services
Now proxy servers are basically browser-focused solutions. With that out of the picture, they’re fairly similar toVPNsolutions. Of course, bandwidth speeds and levels ofencryptionare of lesser value on proxies.
In addition, they are often countered with reverse proxies that stop the mirroring effect proxy server does in order to mimic your own IP’s activity. Which means that some sites will still remain geo-restricted.Check out the best privacy protection software for Windows 10.
Nonetheless, even if they’re not as good asVPNs, they can certainly come in handy for simple operations like avoiding geo-restrictions and retaining acceptable levels of privacy.
So, you can indeed use a proxy to hide yourIP addresswhile using LAN, but don’t expect miracles. It depends on your needs. Furthermore, some users are quite satisfied with browser extensions that are often marketed asVPNsolutions.
They’re just proxy solutions (for obvious reasons), but some of those are a valid choice for undemanding users. If you’re more site-oriented, here’s the list of proxies that will temporarily hide your IP:
3. Try out Tor Browser
We can’t possibly make a list of ways how to hide your IP and avoid mentioning Tor Browser. In the era when every browser developer advertises as pro-privacy, there’s one browser that’s above and beyond the mainstream competition.
And that’s Tor (The Onion Router) browser that offers multi-layeredencryptionand it’s completely free and open-source.Check out this complete guide on how todownload and use Tor Browser on Windows 10.
You can use it as your daily driver or run Tor only when you need that extra privacy and safety. It employs the DuckDuckGo search engine, albeit it slows the bandwidth speed a bit.
In addition, you can use the Tor browser to access the Deep Web, which seems to be the thing for some users. Another thing in favor of Tor is, obviously, a preferential selection ofsecurity.
You can let it only hide your IP and work like any other browser or use its full protective potential and utilize military-gradesecurity.Either way, the best results will come by combiningVPNand Tor, making you the ghost on the grid. You can download Tor for free by following thislink.
4. Reset IP with the Command Prompt
Finally, the last way we decided to enlist doesn’t have too many similarities with the ones we presented above. Namely, it includes Command Prompt and resetting of your current IP address.
However, this solution is only there if you want to change your IP address once if your IP got banned or blocked. Should your PC not acquire IP address,here’s how to solve the issue.It’s not a permanent privacy solution, not by a long stretch, but since it’s practically a way to hide your IP, we decided to put it with the rest. Of course, you’ll need to have a wired connection in order to perform it.
Here’s how to reset your IP address with the little help of Command Prompt:
This workaround also depends on your ISP’s policy, so some users won’t be able to repeat it too often.
With that, we can conclude this article. We hope that this was an insightful and informative read.
In case you have an alternative way to hide your IP while using LAN, or questions regarding the ones we already noted above, there’s the comments section below.
More about the topics:Ethernet,VPN,windows 10
Aleksandar Ognjanovic
Aleksandar’s main passion is technology. With a solid writing background, he is determined to bring the bleeding edge to the common user. With a keen eye, he always spots the next big thing surrounding Microsoft and the Windows OS.
Focused on Windows errors and how to solve them, he also writes about the OS’s latest features as well as its interface.
In his free time, he likes to read, listen to music, and enjoy the nature. Hiking is one of his newly found passions.
User forum
0 messages
Sort by:LatestOldestMost Votes
Comment*
Name*
Email*
Commenting as.Not you?
Save information for future comments
Comment
Δ
Aleksandar Ognjanovic
