Provider, ASN and prefix
Every network on the internet has an autonomous system number (ASN) and announces blocks of addresses (prefixes) with BGP, the routing protocol between networks. Your address sits inside one of those prefixes, and the network announcing it is usually your provider.
The organisation in the registry record can differ from the company you pay. Smaller providers lease addresses from larger ones, and mobile virtual operators run on a carrier's network.
Where the data comes from
The ASN and owner come from a downloaded database (DB-IP Lite, or MaxMind GeoLite2 when configured). The announced prefix and origin AS come from RIPEstat, which collects routing tables from route collectors worldwide. The registration comes from RDAP at the regional internet registry: APNIC, ARIN, RIPE NCC, LACNIC or AFRINIC.
Questions
- What is an ASN?
- An autonomous system number identifies one network in internet routing. Your provider, large companies, universities, cloud platforms and content networks each have one or more.
- Why does the registry show another company?
- Address blocks are registered to whoever holds them at the registry. A provider may use space held by its parent company, a wholesaler or a carrier.