Using random hardware address

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becool773

Level F
https://imgur.com/a/gm8COFN
Can someone please eli5 what hardware address is?
Is this similar to mac address?
The wifi port will have separate hardware address, lan separate and if there's a vpn installed then it will have a separate hardware address, right?
Which is the best software to change or make the hardware address random? And does it make it random for everthing in Control Panel\Network and Internet\Network Connections ?
 
Hardware address = MAC
Every device that can communicate over WIFI, wired Ethernet, Bluetooth, etc will have one programmed during manufacturing. This serves as device fingerprint for identification, since the assigned IP address can change

You can change MAC using software or it can be a feature on your device itself, especially routers. You don't really need to make them random unless you're super paranoid, in which case you shouldn't be using any electronic device at all. In fact by using random MAC, you can no longer use your things like your router's DHCP address reservation

Fun fact: Google's location services can determine your location even without a GPS signal if you're in range of WiFi base stations (routers) because they have catalogued it's rough location when a device with GPS signal came near that station.

Notice I said in range and not "connected". Even if everyone in the world started to randomize their MACs overnight, Google has profiled enough data to rebuild the digital map of everyone/every wireless device.
 
n1r0 said:
Hardware address = MAC
Every device that can communicate over WIFI, wired Ethernet, Bluetooth, etc will have one programmed during manufacturing. This serves as device fingerprint for identification, since the assigned IP address can change

You can change MAC using software or it can be a feature on your device itself, especially routers. You don't really need to make them random unless you're super paranoid, in which case you shouldn't be using any electronic device at all. In fact by using random MAC, you can no longer use your things like your router's DHCP address reservation

Fun fact: Google's location services can determine your location even without a GPS signal if you're in range of WiFi base stations (routers) because they have catalogued it's rough location when a device with GPS signal came near that station.

Notice I said in range and not "connected". Even if everyone in the world started to randomize their MACs overnight, Google has profiled enough data to rebuild the digital map of everyone/every wireless device.
Click to expand...
Thank you. It should in system so asked. Moreover if you use swiggy's website, then they won't allow you to use the same browser for some other number. The only option is to change the mac address.
Can you share the name of a good and trustworthy mac changer for windows?
What does this line mean in layman language?
In fact by using random MAC, you can no longer use your things like your router's DHCP address reservation
Click to expand...
You mentioned about google location services, are they in windows or only in android phones? And is mac id changing possible for phones also?
 

1. Swiggy​

AFAIK web sites can't identify you via MAC. Only your router knows your device MAC, and it talks to the internet, so your network is protected from the internet

Sites can know your public IP, your browser info, and your cookies. So that's how they are limiting active logins probably. Try opening an Incognito Window and log in using another number. If that works, just create another user profile for your browser to keep both accounts logged in. Google how to do that

I didn't even know they had a webiste you could order on lol. Would have helped when my phone died


2. MAC address reservation​

By default, when devices connect to a router via wire or WiFi, it assigns them an IP address randomly, each time it connects or for a certain period. If I need to share files on my local network I need to enter the server's IP
So to prevent it from changing, I bind the server's MAC to an IP address. This ensures the server always gets that IP address and it isn't assigned to any other device


3. Changing MAC​

I've only tried this on Linux, a long time ago, so can't really comment.
My "Chinese" phone uses a random MAC everytime it connects to a new Wifi network and I need to disable it manually. First day I connected to my home network, I freaked out thinking the CCP was hacking into my network due to all the new MACs logged in my router :tearsofjoy:
 
n1r0 said:

1. Swiggy​

AFAIK web sites can't identify you via MAC. Only your router knows your device MAC, and it talks to the internet, so your network is protected from the internet

Sites can know your public IP, your browser info, and your cookies. So that's how they are limiting active logins probably. Try opening an Incognito Window and log in using another number. If that works, just create another user profile for your browser to keep both accounts logged in. Google how to do that

I didn't even know they had a webiste you could order on lol. Would have helped when my phone died


2. MAC address reservation​

By default, when devices connect to a router via wire or WiFi, it assigns them an IP address randomly, each time it connects or for a certain period. If I need to share files on my local network I need to enter the server's IP
So to prevent it from changing, I bind the server's MAC to an IP address. This ensures the server always gets that IP address and it isn't assigned to any other device


3. Changing MAC​

I've only tried this on Linux, a long time ago, so can't really comment.
My "Chinese" phone uses a random MAC everytime it connects to a new Wifi network and I need to disable it manually. First day I connected to my home network, I freaked out thinking the CCP was hacking into my network due to all the new MACs logged in my router :tearsofjoy:
Click to expand...
Install swiggy using your number. Then clone and the app and use a second number to install swiggy. Within a couple of days the second number will not be used to login to swiggy in your phone. The first number will work fine.
If you click on wifi hotspot option in your phone, it will give you an option to randomize the mac address. Is that possible while browsing websites or while connecting to a data network?

Can you please answer this, You mentioned about google location services, are they in windows or only in android phones? And is mac id changing possible for phones also?
 
becool773 said:
Then clone and the app and use a second number to install swiggy
Click to expand...
Numbers are used to _login_ not install. Are you installing the second swiggy instance using the same Google account? That'll probably trigger stuff, yes. Install using a different Google account.

Your questions are confusing - there is a principle in tech support, state your actual issue and not what is going wrong when you on your own try to solve that issue., or at the very least give a clear problem statement, steps taken in order, expected behaviour, observed behaviour.
 
calvin1719 said:
Numbers are used to _login_ not install. Are you installing the second swiggy instance using the same Google account? That'll probably trigger stuff, yes. Install using a different Google account.

Your questions are confusing - there is a principle in tech support, state your actual issue and not what is going wrong when you on your own try to solve that issue., or at the very least give a clear problem statement, steps taken in order, expected behaviour, observed behaviour.
Click to expand...
Sorry I mistyped, create a seocnd work profile and login to swiggy using a second number. It will work but within a work that number will be banned from that device. They use hardware address for this.
calvin1719 said:
Your questions are confusing - there is a principle in tech support, state your actual issue and not what is going wrong when you on your own try to solve that issue., or at the very least give a clear problem statement, steps taken in order, expected behaviour, observed behaviour.
Click to expand...
I apologize, the problem is that many apps like swiggy are using hardware addresses to stop a user from using 2 different apps with two numbers in a same phone. The question is how to change the hardware address to tackle this problem?
 
calvin1719 said:
What makes you so sure that the app is using a hardware address to detect that there are 2 app installations on the same device?
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It was mentioned on xda by some developer, iirc from Gujarat. He was using some custom os so he used to change hardware addresses automatically or randomly.
 
No source, no evidence? Just some so called developer saying something and you believed it and based your troubleshooting on it? Please stop believing everything you read on the net.
I don't know the mechanism by which swiggy is detecting dual install but i highly doubt it's a hardware address. Apps don't usually have access to a MAC address. If it's IMEI through asking for phone perms, that's possible maybe.
 
calvin1719 said:
No source, no evidence? Just some so called developer saying something and you believed it and based your troubleshooting on it? Please stop believing everything you read on the net.
I don't know the mechanism by which swiggy is detecting dual install but i highly doubt it's a hardware address. Apps don't usually have access to a MAC address. If it's IMEI through asking for phone perms, that's possible maybe.
Click to expand...
Will share the link when I get back but you will possibly deny that too.
 
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