can you trace an email

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Discussion

jlee

Original Poster:

167 posts

88 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
Someone has sent a work colleague compromising pictures of his gf. Is there any way to find out an ip address off a hotmail address?


Mattt

16,661 posts

217 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
You can view the headers

So

26,271 posts

221 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
jlee said:
Someone has sent a work colleague compromising pictures of his gf. Is there any way to find out an ip address off a hotmail address?
If you forward the email to me with any attachments I'll see if I can help.

CAPP0

19,530 posts

202 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
You can probably get the IP address from the header. Unlikely to be much help though, it could be mobile, wireless hotspot, coffee shop, etc.

boxst

3,699 posts

144 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
You could google the email address assuming it isn't just a burner one and you may find they have advertised something or used it elsewhere.

mattley

3,024 posts

221 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
jlee said:
Someone has sent a work colleague compromising pictures of his gf. Is there any way to find out an ip address off a hotmail address?
The answer is maybe, your mail server admin is your first port of call.


Sgt Bilko

1,929 posts

214 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
Depending on the term "compromising" the cops can. Tell your colleague to keep the original email. The header will contain the IP address of the sender. Assuming they haven't been tricky, it may resolve back to an account. The cops can request the details of the account holder. There's some other stuff that can be done but I can't go into specifics.

To get the IP depends if he uses hotmail live or outlook (web access). It's contained in the header data and this data, when read bottom upwards, appears in the "received from" line.

Edited by Sgt Bilko on Tuesday 28th March 22:33

jlee

Original Poster:

167 posts

88 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
Do police take this seriously? Would they go to the trouble to trace the sender?

Sgt Bilko

1,929 posts

214 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
jlee said:
Do police take this seriously? Would they go to the trouble to trace the sender?
Sextortion perhaps. Anything else no

Anything outside of the line of this thread, depends. Threats to kill - yes. Facebook clanging - unlikely.

Edited by Sgt Bilko on Tuesday 28th March 22:57

davepoth

29,395 posts

198 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
boxst said:
You could google the email address assuming it isn't just a burner one and you may find they have advertised something or used it elsewhere.
Good shout. You haven't been able to get a hotmail email address for a couple of years AIUI so this is unlikely to be a burner.

TooMany2cvs

29,008 posts

125 months

Tuesday 28th March 2017
quotequote all
What's he actually trying to do?

If he finds out the IP address, then what? He'll know it's from a BT broadband connection that's probably in <city>. And?

If he's trying to find out if the g/f is playing away, then that won't much help him, and there's a much easier way. Ask her. I'm assuming he'll be able to tell the difference between genuine outrage and horror, and a simple evasive lie...

GCH

3,984 posts

201 months

Wednesday 29th March 2017
quotequote all
davepoth said:
Good shout. You haven't been able to get a hotmail email address for a couple of years AIUI so this is unlikely to be a burner.
You can still sign up for hotmail

Trabi601

4,865 posts

94 months

Wednesday 29th March 2017
quotequote all
So said:
jlee said:
Someone has sent a work colleague compromising pictures of his gf. Is there any way to find out an ip address off a hotmail address?
If you forward the email to me with any attachments I'll see if I can help.
rofl

So

26,271 posts

221 months

Wednesday 29th March 2017
quotequote all
boxst said:
You could google the email address assuming it isn't just a burner one and you may find they have advertised something or used it elsewhere.
I Googled "girlfriend nude photos". I'm sorry to say I think the chap has done this before.

buggalugs

9,243 posts

236 months

Wednesday 29th March 2017
quotequote all
Check the exif information on the picture, it might be geotagged

Wobbegong

15,077 posts

168 months

Wednesday 29th March 2017
quotequote all
jlee said:
Do police take this seriously? Would they go to the trouble to trace the sender?
If it is 'revenge porn' or 'voyeur' they do. A lady I know had a video of her in the shower shared online by an ex-roommate at uni. It wasn't a video she made, the roommate had used a hidden camera and then posted it online to try and hurt her eek




KrazyIvan

4,341 posts

174 months

Wednesday 29th March 2017
quotequote all
Wobbegong said:
jlee said:
Do police take this seriously? Would they go to the trouble to trace the sender?
If it is 'revenge porn' or 'voyeur' they do. A lady I know had a video of her in the shower shared online by an ex-roommate at uni. It wasn't a video she made, the roommate had used a hidden camera and then posted it online to try and hurt her eek
Link or it didn't happen.......

If blackmail is involved the police will take it very seriously.

WinstonWolf

72,857 posts

238 months

Wednesday 29th March 2017
quotequote all
buggalugs said:
Check the exif information on the picture, it might be geotagged
This is probably the best chance assuming it hasn't been stripped, you probably won't get much traceable info from the IP in the headers.

jlee

Original Poster:

167 posts

88 months

Wednesday 29th March 2017
quotequote all
can you force an isp to give you the information? By law / court etc?
I'm unsure as to the picture content but believe it was candid pictures she took for her bf etc

Oakey

27,521 posts

215 months

Wednesday 29th March 2017
quotequote all
So what does he think has happened?

Her account has been hacked and this guy has accessed her photos?

Or is it that she's sent the same photos to someone else?

What's the hotmail address? Is it something generic and throwaway or does it have any unique identifiers that could be Googled leading to their identity?