MAC addresses and the TCP/IP protocol suite

[Jake Bunce]

Media Access Control, that is. Not the platform. :D

I think thewitt was saying that MAC addresses weren't defined in the http protocol or something. A friend of mine says his MAC address was banned from an online gaming service. So if MAC addresses can't be transmitted over http than how is this possible? What protocol do online gaming services typically use for authentication? Do any protocols within the TCP/IP protocol suite allow for MAC address viewing? Aren't MAC addresses a core part of the addressing portion of TCP/IP packets?

Just curious. :)

[gekko]

MAC addresses can be indentified. Many broadband ISPs use them to prevent the users from using unauthorized devices through their connection. I could only use 1 computer through my cable service, so i had to setup a router. I called to have them change the MAC address that it allowed to that of the router and their systems detected it.

There's obviously some way to detect it online.

[Heikin]

I had to give my MAC address of my LAN Card to my ISP, so if I want use a other PC then I have to pay additional $15.
If the MAC address is not the same then I have no way to connect.

In W2K use the command ipconfig /all to see the details. (In W98 it’s winconfig, not sure)

Heikin

[Mas*Mind]

I believe the mac-address is obtained via the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)

so it's not through tcp/ip

[Jake Bunce]

so would an online gaming service have any way of obtaining the MAC address of a client and use it to ban?

[Setokaiba]

That would be very handy to do away with the members that are disturbing.

[schwab2clarkson]

so would an online gaming service have any way of obtaining the MAC address of a client and use it to ban?
Did you have that happen to you Jake?
They can get your IP address and IP ban you. I think it would be highly illegal if they went and banned your MAC address. I know that the police here in Australia would probably get contacted and be asked to shutdown any forum or site that was doing that.

[Dilly]

Did you have that happen to you Jake?
They can get your IP address and IP ban you. I think it would be highly illegal if they went and banned your MAC address. I know that the police here in Australia would probably get contacted and be asked to shutdown any forum or site that was doing that.
Do you know what a MAC address is?

[Geni]

Obviously not and she has no idea of what police do and do not do.

But… lets not derail this thread as I’m smelling a great way to ban people who do not want to stay banned since IP address banning is useless for anybody who is a little more tech savvy. Real interesting to find out how they are getting the MAC address.

[SNN]

MAC addresses are discoverable over the HTTP(S) protocol. It's all dependent on how it's used. A C/C++/etc. program can clearly find a mac address and send it to anywhere it needs to go.

Any service that allows java, flash, etc. to run on your system can definitely get your MAC address. Right now, it seems that HTTPd is not smart enough to get your mac address without help from a external program on the end-users' system. I'm not sure that the browser would send that data for any reason.


schwab, it is not illegal (Anywhere) to ban MAC addresses. A MAC address is a computer identification address. Eg 00:0F:F1:4B:4C:4D or something along those lines.

[Paul M]

so would an online gaming service have any way of obtaining the MAC address of a client and use it to ban?
Not via http (or https) unless the page ran some local code to extract it from your pc and then transmit it back.

Also worth noting - almost any network driver these days will let you set you set your MAC address to anything you like, so MAC address banning is pointless.

[Murphy]

so would an online gaming service have any way of obtaining the MAC address of a client and use it to ban?

Don't know for sure about a gaming service, but I do know that your ISP can see your MAC address. I would guess they can being you are connected to their network.

[Wayne Luke]

Also worth noting - almost any network driver these days will let you set you set your MAC address to anything you like, so MAC address banning is pointless.

MAC address banning would be more effective than cookie or IP address banning still. Few people still know how to change it. Though with ISP's locking your modem to a particular MAC address these days, the knowledge will get more and more common. My router uses a MAC address from a computer we haven't had for 3 years now.

[deuterium]

I wonder if the MAC on the router can be changed.... my router's running linux so it makes it easier... and I can telnet into it :)

[Wayne Luke]

I wonder if the MAC on the router can be changed.... my router's running linux so it makes it easier... and I can telnet into it :)
It can... I have a Linksys router and can connect to it via HTTP from any wired computer. The thing is that our modem is locked to that MAC address. If the device it is hooked to returns any other MAC address than we cannot connect to the internet. We could have it changed but that would require calling up Time Warner and sitting on hold for a while.

[deuterium]

It can... I have a Linksys router and can connect to it via HTTP from any wired computer. The thing is that our modem is locked to that MAC address. If the device it is hooked to returns any other MAC address than we cannot connect to the internet. We could have it changed but that would require calling up Time Warner and sitting on hold for a while.

I have the WAG54GS, UKonly... and they've disabled telnetting into the device in the latest firmware... which also contains numerous fixes... still trying to hack into the firmware to enable it :)

[Floris]

Did you have that happen to you Jake?
They can get your IP address and IP ban you. I think it would be highly illegal if they went and banned your MAC address. I know that the police here in Australia would probably get contacted and be asked to shutdown any forum or site that was doing that.
If you have no idea what you are talking about, and don't even bother reading up on it, googling for information or learning from wikipedia, and are just posting to up your post count, then do not be surprised when people on this forum tell you to stfu and gtfo.

You are back on the ignore list, because despite all the trolling you have received on this site from other members for your ridiculous contributions to topics, you're still talking utter nonsense when you participate in a conversation that is obviously way over your head. And that is my observation. And in my personal opinion your replies are ruining a good mood in a very normal topic. Making it oh so frustrating to read through them.

Stop posting just to up your post count, it's against the forum rules and a prime argument for getting you perm banned, which to be honest, has my vote. (And yes, I am fully aware that I am a hypocrite for breaking the forum rules by being negative towards another user on this site - but at this moment I feel this is a war I have to fight, fire with fire.)


Did you have that happen to you Jake?
If you have read his first post you see that he specifies it is not him -1 point


They can get your IP address and IP ban you.
The thread title, did your read it? It is about the NIC's MAC address, and not the IP, additionally Jake stipulated he is aware that the host address is included in a tcp/ip packet, but questioning how the MAC is obtained by the receiving party. -1 point


I think it would be highly illegal if they went and banned your MAC address.
Not only is it pure nonsense what you are saying, you have no idea if this is even the case, because you have no clue what the NIC's MAC address is, see previous 2 quotes I pointed out. And a user is connecting to a service that is provided, therefor the service provider is at freedom to accept/decline access with or without ground, especially if a terms of services which is agreed upon prior to connecting has a clause for specifically this situation -1 point


I know that the police here in Australia would probably get contacted and be asked to shutdown any forum or site that was doing that.
You say you KNOW, then you use PROBABLY. I am convinced you do not have a clue. That said, the Police would NOT get involved, at all. No crime has been committed. I am not even going to comment on the second half of that sentence, otherwise it would be -2 points. -1 point

Please do not just bawl over this, but actually learn from it, see where it goes wrong, and educate yourself, think twice before posting again, and read up on documentation before posting the first time, and if you have nothing to say: don't. And if you do not know what is going on or have no clue what things mean and don't want to spend time learning: don't participate.

[Mr. Mikey]

That would be very handy to do away with the members that are disturbing.

You do realise that this topic is from 2001, and that the OP has probably forgotten ALL about this?

[Jake Bunce]

You do realise that this topic is from 2001, and that the OP has probably forgotten ALL about this?

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