Who is Spying on You Check with ipconfig

How to Instantly See What Your Computer Is Secretly Connecting To – No Tools Needed

Did you know your computer might be chatting with dozens of websites in the background—without you ever opening a browser tab?

It’s not a conspiracy theory. It’s real. And there's a simple built-in way to see exactly what sites your computer is connecting to—no downloads, no complex tools like Wireshark, just a single command in your terminal.

In this post, I’ll walk you through it, explain why it matters, and what you might uncover along the way (spoiler: it’s more than you think).

One Command That Reveals It All

Open Command Prompt and type this:

bash

CopyEdit

ipconfig /displaydns

Hit Enter. now staring at a long list of DNS records cached by your system. These are the websites, services, and servers your computer has contacted, directly or through software running in the background.

This is essentially your system’s digital memory of where it’s been reaching out online.

Should You Care?

Most people assume their computer only talks to websites when they do. But that’s far from reality

Here’s what I found on my own system:

Microsoft domains (ure.net, msidentity.com, activity.windows.com) – expected on Windows, but wow, there’s a lot.

Office apps, OneDrive, Skype – even if you don’t use them.

NVIDIA, Dell, VMware – software silently phoning home.

Wondershare – a program I installed ages ago and forgot existed.

Amplitude.com – an analytics platform likely being used by one of my apps.

GamesDB.net, Steam, Google APIs, Apple domains – and more.

What shocked me wasn’t just the volume but the variety. Stuff I haven’t touched in months? Still calling out.

You Can Learn From This

This DNS list is like peeking behind the curtain. It shows:

Any software is phoning home

Apps connect to third-party services

Any suspicious or unknown domains appear

Info-stealers or bloatware silently running

It’s also great for spotting telemetry and background data collection, especially from system-level software. Yes, even your printer driver might be doing some unexpected networking.

 

Here's How

If you’d rather not leave a trail of where your system’s been, you can flush the cache:

bash

CopyEdit

ipconfig /flushdns

This resets the list. Now, when you run /displaydns again, it’ll only show fresh connections going forward—great for real-time monitoring or privacy-conscious users.

What Surprised Most

Despite cleaning the cache, Microsoft’s telemetry connections still reappear almost instantly. Services like events.data.microsoft.com make sure that connection is always alive. You truly can’t have a second of peace!

More interestingly, some programs connected to unexpected domains like analytics platforms or update servers I never knowingly approved. This raises questions about consent, transparency, and control.

Security Implications

DNS trick is more than geeky curiosity it’s a mini security audit. You might uncover:

Suspicious background activity

Hidden auto-updates or software telemetry

Signs of outdated apps phoning home

Potential info-stealers or spyware connections

Combine it with a zero-trust approach like ThreatLocker’s application control or similar endpoint protection—and you’ve got serious defensive power.

Enterprise users, default deny policies can completely block unapproved software from running, alert on risky behavior (like ransomware deleting backups), and allow only whitelisted apps. The future of endpoint security is layered, proactive, and built on visibility like this.

Run the Command and See for Yourself

 run ipconfig /displaydns. Then scroll through the results.

Did anything surprise you?

See any weird domains?

Discover an old app still calling out?

You might just learn more about your system in 30 seconds than you have in the last year.

Modern computers are constantly connected but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t ask questions. Tools like this empower you to see what’s really happening behind the scenes, no advanced skills required.

So share this with someone who thinks their system’s locked down, or who’s curious about digital privacy. Let’s bring a little more transparency to our tech.