Many Internet surfers are fairly naive about the Internet and the ability of websites and servers to gather information. For the sake of clarity on this point the Cafe felt that it would be fair to describe our own practices in monitoring traffic to and from the Cafe.
The Cafe uses two independent software packages to monitor visitation to the Cafe. However, this type of monitoring does not reveal the identity of the visitor unless the visitor or the server discloses their identity. Companies usually disclose their identity through their own servers. Many Cafe visitors have disclosed their identity willingly, but still the vast majority of visitors remain anonymous and this is fine with the Cafe.
Internet Protocol (IP) is the method of directing Internet traffic or messages from the sender to the receiver whether this is by email or by surfing websites on the Internet. IP is assigned to an individual’s computer by the Internet Service Provider (ISP) to be its address on the Internet. IP can also be used to track Internet fraud and theft to its source. If you’ve watched “To Catch a Predator” on NBC TV, you have seen Chris Hansen repeatedly stand in front of sexual predators with a ream of paper reading Internet conversations between the perp and the prospective victim. In addition to these conversations, that ream of paper no doubt contains the IP history of the perp that can be used to determine the origin of the perp’s Internet access through an ISP. Read the rest of this entry »
