...to wonder how MNHQ knows that a poster is a PBP?

[Deadwood58]

Just wondering really - I presume they have to use a new email address to create a new account, so how can MNHQ link that up with a previously banned account?

@ThinkingOfCeline

Very helpful, thank you! I'd never even heard of IP addresses before.

It's remarkably easy to change your IP address though.

Is it?

I've had the same MN username for 14 years, and only ever had one email address, EVER, so maybe I'm not the best person to ask......

Is it

I can do mine through my router.

It's remarkably easy to change your IP address though

I wish I knew how! I could finally watch TV series from other countries and even youtube videos which currently haven't been made available in my country FFS

Pheromones.

It is really easy to change your IP address, even easier to use mask it.

It's really common too, back when Netflix was rubbish in the UK I used to hide my IP address so I could log in on the US site and get all the good shows. Everyone I knew did too

Thinking Is that still possible? How do you do it????

Banning on IP address is inefficient. Not only can IP addresses easily be changed, it also means that in shared housing, where all people share an IP address, everyone would be banned.

HWID can also be spoofed but not as easily and it bans one machine from the site, not everyone who happens to be on that IP address.

Can I ask who Beanie is? Not me, obvs... Or maybe I protesteth too much!

Some PBP just keep coming back - not sure why they don't take the hint though - weird. Why would you just HAVE to post?

I guess those that keep coming back think it's a misunderstanding and they're really not a trouble making fantasist - just everyone else thinks they are.

MAC address (which is similar to a serial number of your phone/laptop) is most likely. They will record who has logged in from what devices etc, and cross reference against that.

IP addresses are recycled too often - I could have one today and another tomorrow if I unplugged my router.

MAC address is a bit like your VIN on your car. Very difficult to change for the average user.

couldnt resist

Well to mask it you can use a VPN. A VPN is like a middle man. So if you imagine your device sending data to mumsnet, a VPN would sit in the middle. So mumsnet would only see the VPN address and not yours (though they could ask the VPN to provide the original address). You can get VPNS for free.

For the pp who mentioned YouTube, that's how I used to get my Bondi Rescue fix before they put all the episodes on CBS Reality 😂😂

Alonso that's exactly how it went...

If you do decide to use a VPN though read up on it beforehand, it wasn't an issue a couple of years ago but the free ones now usually sell data in order to provide their service free of cost

So your IP address is basically just your homes internet?
So if someones teenager cam on her causing trouble and was blocked their mum wouldnt be able to later sign up because they have the same IP address?

Sometimes you just know. There can't be that many new trolls that see Mumsnet as some sort of irresistible site to conquer.

Sorry to sound stupid, but who's Beanie?

Beanie is a very boring PBP.

So if you use cellular data from a phone that would be different to using the wifi, so you could use different phones to post

But couldn't a banned poster just go to Mac Donald's or somewhere and create s new ID there ( or anywhere using 4g)

But couldn't a banned poster just go to Mac Donald's or somewhere and create s new ID there

MNHQ have word analysis.

I suppose PBPs have a style that gives them away.

I think a lot of PBPs can't seem to resist starting goady threads and giving themselves away. They don't seem able to stay below the radar and just make occasional comments on different threads. They just continue to draw attention to themselves.