How does facebook know i'm from the UK with a US proxy?

[Entrepreneur]

I'm getting enraged by fuckbook and how i can visit it with no cookies, through a cloakfish US proxy and it knows i'm form the UK. I can tell because it adds en-gb to the start of the domain. If i set up an account it also only allows me to state my address in a UK format.

How is this? What possible holes are there within this system? It seems very strange?

I have even added 2 knew cookie scrubber type addons for FF and it still sees me as UK. Even Google sees me as US based along with every other bugger.

HELP!

 

[wlingle117]

Perhaps they are using Flash Cookies. This is new stuff that most people don't know about. Check here and it will tell you who has stored flash cookies -

http://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager06.html

.

Also, from here you can disable flash cookies as well. I'd be interested to know if this is the case.

 

[Arthas]

it is also possible that they're using active content to bypass your proxy. you probably would have got a security warning at some point in time if that were the case as im fairly certain flash is not capable of doing this (unless you had previously received a flash cookie from your home IP).

 

[Entrepreneur]

With regard to flash cookies i installed an addon which supposedly removes them, so i'm not sure this is it. Either way, i'm going to work my way through the flash plugin and disable the cookies on it or something.

 

[pencil]

Another possibility is that you are using a transparent proxy, which can leak your IP address.

 

[Arthas]

Another possibility is that you are using a transparent proxy, which can leak your IP address.

i don't think cloakfish is transparent

 

[albertb]

Its not using cookies or your IP address. Its finding your location from your preferred language in firefox settings.

 

[Arthas]

Its not using cookies or your IP address. Its finding your location from your preferred language in firefox settings.

that sure is possible but i doubt it. think of how many people in the US who are from the UK would fall into that catagory. still possible though i guess.

 

[justone]

I'm getting enraged by fuckbook and how i can visit it with no cookies, through a cloakfish US proxy and it knows i'm form the UK. I can tell because it adds en-gb to the start of the domain. If i set up an account it also only allows me to state my address in a UK format.

How is this? What possible holes are there within this system? It seems very strange?

I have even added 2 knew cookie scrubber type addons for FF and it still sees me as UK. Even Google sees me as US based along with every other bugger.

HELP!

This is based on the browser-accept-language
check for it in about:config, it's part of your useragent

 

[Entrepreneur]

This is based on the browser-accept-language
check for it in about:config, it's part of your useragent

Hahaha! I changed the language and Bob's your uncle. Funny that.

Thanks, and thanks to the earlier poster who also mentioned this, how crazy!

Cheers all!

By the way justone, i didn't think it was your proxies for a second.

 

[mikep]

Another possibility is that you are using a transparent proxy, which can leak your IP address.

QFT.

messageisnolongertooshort

 

[Entrepreneur]

Well, just got to the address again and it gives me the UK option, you know postcode, county etc, with country, UK, pre-selected. This is wierd.

 

[justone]

check : cookies, flash cookies, useragent
look at the proxy checker in my sig it shows the useragent and also decodes your primary language.
To verify try using another proxy, maybe they really think it is from UK (they might use another database of ips to know the location)

But in 95% of all cases it's the browser accept language

 

[Entrepreneur]

Got my accounts banned today and never did manage to get around them auto filling the country as UK. I have no idea how this happening, there is no cookies at all, flash or otherwise. I changed user agents and everything?!

I have no idea how they do this, but wonder whether it could be because i have another browser live at the same time, along with Outlook, that aren't behind a proxy? That's the only thing i can think of.

Just one of those mysteries i think!