[Generalpiggle]

I have a basic understanding of what exactly an IP is and what it's purpose is, but I was wondering, what exactly could one do with JUST an IP and how easy it to protect it exactly?

[pvnk]

U can report them to the FBI with their IP.

[meow]

Other than using an IP for information gathering purposes and whatever, the only thing you can do with an IP is send data to it.

[Xiledcore]

An anology for understanding IPs is to look at them as house addresses. You can send data to an IP just like you can send mail to someone if you know their address. Other than tracing the IP, you can also send data to the IP, perform port scans, and by looking at the way the operating system reacts to the data sent, you can sometimes gather sensitive information like what operating system the user is running. With the information you've gathered, you can look up exploits and potentially hack the user.