The Internet is a dangerous place these days. Users are more aware than ever that their actions online could single them out for the ever-increasing crime of identity theft.

Where once we had such simple common sense warnings as ‘don’t give out your credit card details in chat rooms’ there are now, in the age of wireless Internet access, more complex provisos to help and guide the average user. But what’s going on behind the scenes, and why does driving down the information super highway mean screaming, “I’m visiting Tom’s hardware!” out the window of your e-car with all your details painted on the side?

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It’s understandable that, as the technology behind the Internet develops, advances are made in the way users are handled. For example, websites are now better equipped to deal with users, directing them to their regional versions, enabling you to read the UK and Ireland version of Tom’s Hardware, while your friends in the US will see the US version when they go to the same address, whilst still allowing the flexibility for readers to see both.

This is perhaps the most beneficial use of programming to process not only IP addresses but in general illustrates an important truth about surfing today. Your browser, by virtue of the fact it accesses a page, gives that page certain information. A page, if it so wishes, can discover what page you came from, what operating system and browser you are running and even a rough idea of which city you’re accessing it from.

Before anybody gets too paranoid, these personal tidbits are provided to improve a user’s experience, reacting differently based on where you came from, within the site or from around the world. Localizing or personalising a user’s browsing experience makes things easier for the user and has the knock-on effect of increasing repeat use. This is all well and good (and perfectly acceptable) but it also raises questions about the amount of information our activity online gives out about us.