VPN does not hide my location

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @Guest last edited by

By default you need to allow a site to get your geolocation.

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

leocg
By default should that not be the exit server?

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @Guest last edited by

What do you mean?

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

I mean shouldn't the exit server somewhere in the US (if the VPN is set to the Americas) provide its geolocation to the outside world?

[blackbird71]

blackbird71 @leocg last edited by

@leocg said in VPN does not hide my location:

By default you need to allow a site to get your geolocation.

I'm not sure what you mean. I've operated Windows systems with geolocation disabled for years and not encountered any problems. If a site wants a visitor's location, they can always look up the listed location of the visiting data-packet's IP, which for a VPN will be that of the VPN exit portal. That may, of course, result in inappropriate regional content/ads or languages being served if the site script uses the IP location to tailor such things.

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @Guest last edited by

Geolocation isn't necessarily based only on your IP address. Even your phone's GPS can be used, depending on the geolocation service provider.

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @blackbird71 last edited by

I mean that the default setting for geolocation in Opera is 'ask first'. So when a site wants to use it, you will see a dialog asking you to allow or deny the site access to your location.

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

OK, apparently I used the wrong term, it's exit portal not exit server.
Anyway, if the target site (in my case it was huffingtonpost.com) "sees" the geolocation of that exit portal it should not be able to find out my real location, just the geolocation of said exit portal, right? Maybe I'm too dense to understand this, it's entirely possible.

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @Guest last edited by

Here with the VPN enabled, the original site is loaded, while that with VPN disabled, the local site is displayed.

So I guess the VPN is working in this case.

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

I don't know what you mean by "original site' and "local site".

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @Guest last edited by

Original: http://huffingtonpost.com/ Local: the localized version of the site for your country if there is one.

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

OK, thanks.
If the exit portal is located in the US, I should get the US version of the site, right?
Just looking at the Washington Post website and the first thing I see is an ad, referring to my home town, a little hamlet in the Texas boondocks.
Scary!

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @Guest last edited by

I think so, and this is what seems to be happening here.

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @Guest last edited by

I have the ad-blocker enabled but disabling it makes an ad not related to my real place shows up in the right of the page.

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

Just out of curiosity: Are you located in the US and do you have your VPN set to the Americas?

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @Guest last edited by

No and no. I'm not in US and my VPN is set to optimal location.

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @Guest last edited by

Setting the VPN to Americas didn't seem to make any difference.

[A Former User]

A Former User last edited by

OK, then you cannot appreciate my frustration with this VPN thing.
Thanks for all the input.

[blackbird71]

blackbird71 @Guest last edited by blackbird71

@esebm Try using the VPN to visit https://ipleak.net/ and it may give some information about what is leaking your location. Give it a few moments to accumulate information, and it should show you data about what information is available to a website and from what.

[leocg]

leocg Moderator Volunteer @Guest last edited by

Why not?