IP Address??

[McMuffin]

Hi guys,
Just wondering if anyone could help me out, that would be great.
Is it possible to track down who a person is merely through a hotmail address - can the police do this and figure out a persons IP address and therefore location?
Also, is there some sort of record of what IP addresses have logged into your myspace, bebo, facebook, hotmail etc.??
Thanks.

 

[McMuffin]

Also, is it legal for yourself or the police to get a hold of this information?

 

[Lorithad]

I imagine it could be done. But it would take forever. First a police report would have to be made, then the police would need to subpoena(I think that's the word) hotmail and get any and all information relevant to the case (IP address(es) of the user, mail history, etc) Then they'd use that information, and go to the ISP that owns that IP address, and from there subpoena the records of the individual that holds the IP address. Those records would include adddress, telephone number, etc.

However, I don't think it is possible for the average person to get ahold of this sort of stuff, as hotmail and ISPs wouldn't just hand out that information to anyone.

 

[superdave1984]

The IP can be traced by your ISP to the general location. If it's to a campus or office, you may be out of luck because there are many users on the system. If it tracks to a residence then you have a winner. Usually. IP's change periodically so it wouild have to be done right away to have a shot. But ISP's keep a log of some kind. It's a long shot at best and would require legal intervention.

 

[McMuffin]

Ok wow. Thankyou both for your feedback!