Knowledge base · Privacy

What the internet can see about you

From your IP a site sees your city and your provider. Together with cookies and a browser fingerprint, that is enough to tie all your visits into one profile. This section covers what sites learn from an IP, how a browser fingerprint works, what a DNS leak is and which of these a VPN hides. Check it on yourself with the tools: the IP that sites see, browser fingerprint, DNS and WebRTC leaks.

PrivacyWhat websites can learn from your IP address
What a public IP address genuinely reveals, and why it does not hand anyone your home address.
PrivacyWhat a VPN does and what it hides
How a VPN works, what it hides from your provider, websites and the Wi-Fi owner, what it doesn't hide, and whether it's legal to use in Russia.
PrivacyBrowser fingerprinting: how sites recognise you without cookies
How sites recognise the same browser by the combination of its settings, and why it works without cookies.
PrivacyWhat a DNS leak is
Why your provider can still see the list of sites you open with a VPN on, and how to check.
PrivacyDNS substitution: why a Russian resolver is a leak
How Russian resolvers and the NSDI distort DNS answers, what it looks like for you and how to check where your DNS lookups go.

What is visible about you without signing up

Opening any page, you give the site your IP address and, through it, your country, city and provider. The browser adds dozens of technical parameters: screen, fonts, time zone, graphics card. Together they form a fingerprint that lets the site recognise you on the next visit even without cookies.

DNS is a separate channel. Before opening a site, your device asks a DNS resolver for its address. If the resolver belongs to your provider or sits in Russia, it sees the names of every site you open, and answers may be substituted. Why — in DNS substitution.

What a VPN hides and what it doesn't

A VPN replaces your IP with its server's address and encrypts traffic up to it: your provider sees only a connection to the server, sites see the server's address. A VPN doesn't remove your browser fingerprint, cookies or account logins — that is up to browser settings and your habits. Where the line runs — in What a VPN does and what it hides.

Check it on yourself

Three free checks show what sites see: the IP sites see, browser fingerprint and DNS and WebRTC leaks. Run them with and without a VPN — the difference shows what is protected and what isn't. A resolver in Russia in the leak test is a reason to check your browser and system settings.