Your internet provider

How does a site know my provider?

Every public address belongs to a block announced to the rest of the internet by one network, identified by an autonomous system number (ASN). Your address falls in your provider’s block, so the block names the provider. On a VPN, a phone hotspot or at work, it names whoever’s network you are actually going through.

Why does it say a company I don’t recognise?

Networks are often registered under a parent or wholesale company rather than the brand on your bill, and VPNs, cloud services and mobile carriers appear under their own names.

See where your provider sits

The front page shows your address and lets you pull back to see the block your provider announces, the registry that gave it out, and the whole address space around it.