What is an IP Address?

Let’s first get some basics out of the way.
The internet, being nothing more than a vast group of interconnected networks, requires a system to establish communication between these networks. The Internet Protocol, usually referred to as IP, is the principal technology, responsible for this connection. IP is tasked with defining, structuring and delivering information packets from point A to point B.
IP addresses are nothing more than system identifiers. In version four of the internet protocol (IPv4), IP addresses are defined as a 32-bit number; x.x.x.x where x is a value between 0 and 255.
Here are some valid IP addresses:

• 123.45.67.89
• 8.8.8.8 – an IP address assigned to Google
• 140.247.224.81 – an IP address assigned to Harvard University

Every system, connected to the internet, has its own address; much like the address of your house or the license plate of your car. Every system has to have a unique IP address, assigned to that machine, and that machine only. This means your phone, your laptop, work computer and your printer, all have different IP addresses.
Every participant of the internet has to have an IP address to connect to it.
The way IP operates, IP addresses are a sensitive piece of information as they pinpoint the location of the systems they are assigned to. This is uncircumventable, as the physical location of the connected machine is precisely the information necessary for the internet protocol to establish the most efficient connection.
This is how I know that any IP, which starts with 140.247 will be assigned to Harvard University and how I know where you are based in, simply by looking at your IP address.