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Other questions on this forum have made it clear that the MAC address is not mostly not visible outside the local area network. I want to dig a little deeper about this.
When one buys a tablet or laptop device, is the MAC address included in the record of purchase? Meaning, if I buy the device with a credit card from Best Buy, is the record of that purchase (device, MAC, CC number, and name) available hackable by a foreign intelligence agency that is illegally tracking online usage?
Thanks
I think that whatever is worrying you is a terrible confusion that you have... I recommend you to read a little bit about OSI model... – Jorge Valentini – 2018-11-15T02:42:50.523
No one here can tell you if retailers track the MAC of products they sell. Such a question is off-topic. – I say Reinstate Monica – 2018-11-15T02:47:04.237
Sorry, Twisty, if it's off-topic then it's my bad. But since the issue of MAC address and privacy has been covered extensively in the past on this forum, I thought that extending it one further step would still be a legitimate question. The issue being, of course, if there is a master database of MAC addresses then all the other info on this forum about MAC addresses being hidden behind your router or VPN are moot if the MAC database can be hacked, or misused by an intelligence agency or law enforcement. Just read earlier today that the CIA was spying internally on Americans, by the way. – Marty F – 2018-11-15T06:35:57.503
re: #2 -- There's nothing to preclude it, but it's impossible to say what would apply to a specific item from a specific retailer. – fixer1234 – 2018-11-15T12:26:14.993