It is very common to know what an IP address is and the implications of revealing it in public. However, what many users do not know and is even more relevant is the Mac address and, as you can imagine, it is also essential to hide it.
Keep in mind that if someone knows it, they can put you in danger, since the network you are connected to may be compromised.
Whether it is to avoid restrictions of some kind, protect yourself against any cyberattack or simply improve your privacy, it is key to learn how to hide the MAC address.
Of course, before it is time to go step by step.
What is the MAC address
The first thing is to answer what you are going to hide, logically.
A Mac address is basically an ID for computers, mobiles or devices of this type and allows your computer to connect to the internet.
It should be noted that it is not an address that changes automaticallybut it is assigned by the manufacturer itself and has a structure similar to this: 18-3B-5D-03-8A-40.
Also, a device can have more than one MAC address. For example, if your computer has Wi-Fi and an Ethernet port, it has 2 such addresses.
And most importantly, unlike the IP address, MAC address is not public. This means that the websites you visit cannot know this data. Of course, any network you are connected to has access to it, so if it is a public network it can expose your data if it is compromised.
How to hide your MAC address in Windows and MacOS
With all this clear, now it’s time to learn the most important thing: make your MAC address not appear anywhere. As you can imagine, it is a different process if you use an Apple or Windows computer, so it is necessary to differentiate both systems.
On computers with Microsoft software, the easiest thing to do is to do it this way:
- give to Start and writes Device administrator.
- Now locate the option network adapters and find your team.
- Then right click and click on Properties.
- in the tab Advanced go to option locally administered address and look at the box MAC address.
- Simply, write a new one following the structure that I have mentioned before and restart your computer.
Note that this doesn’t work on some versions of Windows, but all is not lost, since you can hide your MAC address with third party software. Technitium is a free tool that allows you to create a random MAC address virtually on the fly, for example.
If you have a Mac, the process is somewhat more complex, although it requires fewer steps:
- Open the Terminal.
- Now type this command: openssl rand -hex 6 | sed ‘s/(..)/1:/g; s/.$//’
- Remove internet and write the following, keeping in mind that you must replace moo by a random address.
And with this you will have it done.
Keep in mind, however, that the MAC address will return to the default once you restart your computer, so you will have to repeat these steps again to hide it again.
How to hide your MAC address on your iOS or Android mobile
In addition to your computer, any device that you have at home that connects to the Internet also has a MAC address, so you are also interested in knowing how to hide it on your iOS or Android mobile.
Please note that the most recent versions of both operating systems already have enabled by default a function that randomly changes the MAC addressso you shouldn’t worry.
If you want to check it, especially on older mobiles, you must enter the settings of the Wi-Fi network to which you are connected in the settings of your device and see if the option is enabled random mac.
