Hide Motherboard's Machine ID from my ISP?

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fcwedd

Weaksauce
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How can I hide my motherboard's mac address from an ISP network, e.g., Comcast, WoW, etc. Is it possible?

Please explain why!

Thanks guys!
 
Install a network card

Use that instead of your onboard network (which your MAC is tied to)

You could always just assign a different mac to your onboard via software but that would be a less foolproof and less permanent solution.
 
as others have said, just use a router (assuming you aren't already doing so). MAC addresses reside at layer 2, and are not preserved through a layer 3 device (router).
 
XOR != OR said:
Am I the only one that wants to know the details after this post?

But yes, a router will fix ya up fine.
Click to expand...

I know it sounds completely ridiculous. I've been this way ever since I can remember. I get these overbearing compulsions to do the dumbest shit. It's embarrassing. However, I'll tell you all anyways:

I feel the need to make my actual computer (not the modem) to be untraceable. I don't want anything to record my motherboard's ID. Why? I have no idea. I'm literally sick in the head when it comes to this crap. I really only get this way when dealing with computer stuff.

So if I purchase a router, my motherboard's ID or any part of my computer won't be recorded by Comcast?

----

Laugh if you will. I'm the one who has to deal with this shit ;/ I'm at the point where I am considering brain surgery to remove these compulsions.
 
Last edited:
fcwedd said:
I know it sounds completely ridiculous. I've been this way ever since I can remember. I get these overbearing compulsions to do the dumbest shit. It's embarrassing. However, I'll tell you all anyways:

I feel the need to make my actual computer (not the modem) to be untraceable. I don't want anything to record my motherboard's ID. Why? I have no idea. I'm literally sick in the head when it comes to this crap. I really only get this way when dealing with computer stuff.

So if I purchase a router, my motherboard's ID or any part of my computer won't be recorded by Comcast?

----

Laugh if you will. I'm the one who has to deal with this shit ;/ I'm at the point where I am considering braing surgery to remove these compulsions.
Click to expand...

Dude, the last time my ISP got my motherboard ID a bunch of dudes dressed in black broke into my house in the middle of the night and took me out back and beat the shit out of me then stole all my beer.
 
XOR != OR said:
You're such a dick. :)

Well, there are a couple IDs associated with your motherboard, but the one that you should be most interested in is your MAC address. This is burned in to the nic on your motherboard, and yes a router will replace the MAC with it's own before forwarding the packet on.

The bad news? There is no way to be completely anonymous on the internet. None. No matter where you go, no matter what you do, it's possible to track packets back to you in some fashion. Now, is it practical? usually not, but it's not impossible.
Click to expand...

Thanks mate :)

What about Comcast, my ISP, recording my MAC?

Would it be safe to assume that they can't if I install a NIC and a Router?

Thanks!
 
fcwedd said:
I know it sounds completely ridiculous. I've been this way ever since I can remember. I get these overbearing compulsions to do the dumbest shit. It's embarrassing. However, I'll tell you all anyways:

I feel the need to make my actual computer (not the modem) to be untraceable. I don't want anything to record my motherboard's ID. Why? I have no idea. I'm literally sick in the head when it comes to this crap. I really only get this way when dealing with computer stuff..
Click to expand...

If you're OCD in the first place about that stuff...why weren't you behind a router for protection of your computer many many many years ago? Home broadband routers hide your computer(s) behind a hardware NAT firewall..that's first and foremost for protection!!! Since the earliest days of broadband, all my computers, and all my clients computers that I'm in charge of..first and foremost they MUST be behind a NAT router. I won't support computers that aren't behind one. And I'm not OCD about stuff like that.
 
fcwedd said:
Thanks mate :)

What about Comcast, my ISP, recording my MAC?

Would it be safe to assume that they can't if I install a NIC and a Router?

Thanks!
Click to expand...
No, beyond the router they won't see any internal MACs.

It's possible they'll see different TTLs depending on how your router does it's business, but that's just a counter of the number of hops between their system and yours. Not really that big of a deal.
 
fwiw, I doubt a MAC address could pinpoint to you.
Look up a MAC address, and all that's going to tell anybody is the manufacturer of that particular network controller chip.

So if your motherboard has an onboard realtek, it'll be listed with the millions of other realtek onboards.

I highly, highly, highly doubt motherboard and/or network controller chip manufacturers actually log this stuff, and tie a MAC to a motherboards serial number or the like.

but as stated, get a router.
then it'll show up as Linksys/Cisco, Netgear, etc, instead of Intel, Realtek, etc.
 
XOR != OR said:
No, beyond the router they won't see any internal MACs.

It's possible they'll see different TTLs depending on how your router does it's business, but that's just a counter of the number of hops between their system and yours. Not really that big of a deal.
Click to expand...

What are TTLs? Are they unique to each motherboard?

Thanks again!
 
fcwedd said:
What are TTLs? Are they unique to each motherboard?

Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Not unique. TTL stands for Time to Live. The short of it is this; new packets start their life with a TTL of 64 ( I think, someone correct me ). Each time the packet passes through a router, the router decrements this counter. If the TTL ever hits 0, the packet is discarded.

So if a packet arrives at your ISP's router with a TTL of 63, then they know that the packet has already passed through a router ( assuming it really does start life at 64 like my old memory thinks it does ).
 
Your ISP can still track by the device MAC provisioned to be
on their network.

If anything, don't use your ISP's software on your computers.
It's their software that is more likely to report that type of information.
 
Netwerkz101 said:
Your ISP can still track by the device MAC provisioned to be
on their network.

If anything, don't use your ISP's software on your computers.
It's their software that is more likely to report that type of information.
Click to expand...

Which is only their own modem, correct?

If I use a router / nic, comcast can't get my motherboard mac, correct?
 
fcwedd said:
Which is only their own modem, correct?

If I use a router / nic, comcast can't get my motherboard mac, correct?
Click to expand...

All the above people are having a blond moment regarding what Netwerkz101 said. If you install your ISPs software on your PC..that software can report back to the ISP what your MAC address is, regardless of if you have a router in between.

Software is actually capable of finding your MAC address and reporting it to some resource. ;)

But sometimes it's better to sit back and enjoy something, rather than bite fingernails in worry all day and night.
 
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