When properly installed and configured, Homing Pigeon (TM) starts every time the machine is booted. It waits until it senses that a valid TCP/IP connection to a network has been made, either through the dialup networking or a LAN. It then queries its surroundings to determine if it can contact the SMTP server that the user specified in the "SMTP Server" box during its configuration. If it can contact that SMTP server, then it attempts to send a mail message to the address specified during its configuration in the "Your email address" box, emailing you its network location (IP Address and if possible, the reverse lookup for that IP address). If it cannot contact the SMTP server specified in the "SMTP Server" box, then it probes the network looking for alternative ways to send its network location email message. If it succeeds in mailing you such a message, the route information specified in the email header can sometimes be used to help locate the machine.

Key Benefits

• For example, if your machine were moved to some other location, and someone used the dialup networking to connect to their Internet Service Provider (ISP), if Homing Pigeon’s boot message gets to you, the header information will tell you where they logged in, and at what time. That ISP’s log records can provide Law Enforcement Agencies with the identity of their customer who was logged in. (This assumes of course, they did not log into YOUR account. So think twice before checking the "remember password" box on your dialup network login.)
• Another example might be if your machine were moved to some other location, and someone connected it to a LAN running TCP/IP protocalls (most LANs these days do), if Homing Pigeon’s boot message gets to you, the header information will tell you where they logged in, and at what time. The subnet the IP address belongs to will localize the location of the machine to a building or two, which again can assist Law Enforcement Agencies with locating the machine.
• It's Free

Pricing

While Homing Pigeon (TM) has been tested on a number of machines, we also add the usual weasel words that we are not responsible for the accuracy of this program, its working correctly on your or anyone else's machine, nor for errors in the program.