Can Omegle Track You?

Omegle is an online social platform where you can meet strangers worldwide and have a voice chat or video chat with them.

The reason why the platform is so famous is that it does not require you to make a profile or even come up with an alias, you need to click on the “Start Chat” button, and you will immediately be connected to a stranger somewhere in the world.

Both users can end the session at any time, and they will not be paired up again. With that convenience, there is a risk of cyberharassment since there is no authentication or accountability for users on the site, and that’s why the service has put it in its description that you should not share personal information on the site.

Can Omegle Track You?

As with most sites, Omegle gathers and uses cookies to get your information and better the user experience, and with that, it can track users on the site through IP addresses, screen capturing, and shared texting.

However, it is essential to know that this information is used internally to improve the site rather than pinpointing a user, as that is of zero importance.

It is also necessary to see that it is in the website’s policy to keep your data safe, and disclosing it would be illegal unless the authorities and the law back it up.

Since the site still has your data, it also has the power to reveal it in a court of law if the authorities track you for illegal activity and request this information through a court order.

Can Someone Track You on Omegle?

Given that Omegle has access to your IP address and other personal information as a part of their cookies policy, it is possible for someone to track you using the site. This can happen in two ways:

IP Grabbing

Someone can track you on Omegle by convincingly talking to you and pretending to be your friend, only to eventually send you a link on the chat that redirects you to an IP grabber.

IP grabbers are software tools used to spy on people and get their IP addresses so that they can be traced. This method is prevalent in young teenagers who are relatively susceptible and haven’t used the site as much.

But in this case, the person you are talking to will be able to see your IP address using software; however, your IP address can only be used to track your country and city and not your exact location.

Hacking

Another way someone can track you using Omegle is by hacking into their servers and stealing your information. The information the hacker can access also relies on how much personal information the user has shared on their chat with someone and how much access the user has given the site.

Generally, despite not sharing personal information in private conversations, there is still enough information about you on the site that the hacker can extract and use for identity theft and other fraudulent activities.

Granted, it is not the most straightforward feat to pull off, but it is still possible, but if executed, it can put users in a very vulnerable position.

Can Someone Hack You on Omegle?

Yes, it is definitely possible. In fact, there have been many instances where people (usual youngsters) report getting hacked after using Omegle, and they can’t turn off their computers or get rid of the site.

There are two main ways how you can be hacked on Omegle.

Phishing Links

As with any interactive site where people can talk to one another online, there is a chance of hacking taking place with phishing links.

A typical example of phishing is a victim receiving an email from PayPal informing them that their account has been hacked and will be closed if their credit card information is not confirmed.

The victim follows the link in the phishing email to a bogus PayPal website. The stolen credit card data is then utilized to commit more crimes.

Most hackers do this on Omegle by pretending to be a fascinating person on chat and by winning your trust. After gaining your trust, you will be lured into clicking a link they send that is a phishing page, which can infect your computer with a virus or malware.

This virus can ultimately damage your computer and make it unusable, or it can be dormant in your computer and track everything you do on it. The information that the hacker gathers can also be used to harass you, blackmail you or even track you to your house

Accessing Omegle Web Servers

Another way someone can hack you on Omegle is by hacking into their servers and extracting all your chats, IP address, and information.

People usually think that their chats are private and secure and that they get deleted once their session with a stranger end.

However, this is not the case, as one Indian bug hunter has shown that all of the chats are recorded and stored by Omegle on their web servers and can easily be accessed and downloaded. This can also put users at severe risk of harassment or online blackmailing in the future.

What Can You Do About It

Big social platforms like Omegle, Facebook, and Twitter monitor and keep track of the activity you do on their sites and store this data so it can be used to make the user experience better.

Although these big companies do not disclose your personal information to anyone on an individual level, your virtual fingerprint is still stored in their database. Theoretically, every move you have made on that website is traceable back to you.

This is not a reason for concern on its own, but if their servers ever get hacked, then your information is exposed to hackers, and theoretically, they can pinpoint and trace you.

That is why there are some precautions you can put into place to minimize your digital footprint, such as:

• Using proxy servers
• Using VPN
• Not sharing personal information with strangers
• Reading the cookies policy on sites
• Covering your webcam
• Using incognito mode on your browser

While following these will not make you completely anonymous, it will significantly drop your risk of being traced and pinpointed.

Conclusion

Living in a digital world that connects so many different types of people together, it is important to know the harms that exist with exposing your personal information on the internet.

The next step is to know what steps you can take to minimize those risks and make informed decisions about your online security while surfing the internet.

While you can’t ever completely eradicate the chances of your digital identity being compromised, you can put measures into check to downsize its risks.