Category Archives: Tor Browser

Ten years ago, the Internet was not as encrypted as it is today which meant there were many more risks for privacy and security. Nowadays, people can feel safer because of improved encryption tools such as HTTPS (HTTP Strict Transport Security). They can use their credit cards online or send personal information through emails without fear. No one will know whats happening behind the scenes. HTTP, the original web standard and still widely used today for essential functionality such as image loading speed or cookie storage, has mainly been replaced by HTTPS. Though initially only found on websites engaged in commerce over insecure networks with no encryption think banks MFA-protected checkout pages HTTPS has become so ubiquitous that one day we may all have to upgrade from our old HTTPS just like how people had an HTTP setting in their word processor back then! But dont think you are 100% safe. A VPN (virtual private network) and other security measures can still be an excellent option to boost the effectiveness of privacy tools like HTTPS.

Experts still recommend that the average Internet user have a VPN to keep their browsing safe. Use HTTPS Everywhere or an encrypted connection on other sites. Your information will stay hidden from prying eyes when using public WiFi networks like those found in airports, libraries, and coffee shops.

The security benefits are twofold: First, by not providing any personal details online yourself (like a name). Second, because even if someone were somehow able to intercept what was being sent back between browser and server, without knowing anything about how encryption works, they wouldnt see enough detail to track down which particular packets of data belong with whomever else might be accessing those same websites at another time.

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While standards have improved over time, more work must be done before HTTPS adoption reaches 100%. The long tail needs some encryption too!

To keep your data safe, a VPN is an excellent choice. A virtual private network ensures that you have encryption protection on all outgoing and incoming connections. A VPN also secures all other sensitive information such as bank account numbers or login credentials for websites.

HTTPS is a safety measure that every online service and mobile app should implement. However, a VPN can provide an extra layer of protection. HTTPS is an important security measure that helps protect your information, but its not perfect. You still need to be careful about what sites you visit and how theyre accessed on the Internet because there are risks like manipulator-in-the-middle attacks. Someone could trick you into connecting with their browser instead of yours. Or sometimes even downgrade back down from HSTS (which only works for some people).

As a result, many people are unsure what information they should trust, or unaware which sites or apps store their data.

Mozillas Firefox browser offers reassuring padlock icons to show the user it is secure. At the same time, Google Chrome provides security alerts when something seems fishy online. Chromes Verify site identity option makes you think before giving up your password.

In a world where you cant be sure who has access to your data, apps must be carefully designed from the ground up with security in mind. Unfortunately, there are numerous examples where sensitive information is put at risk due to improper design or implementation. Most recently, Bank of America and HSBC had app failures because they failed to verify hostnames properly. Dating app Tinder was sending photos over HTTP instead of secure means (HTTPS). Social media app Clubhouse was sending user IDS as plain text ... and the list goes on! Its hard enough to manage all our online lives without having compromised toolsets too.

Its no surprise that people and businesses are flocking to VPNs. Its a reliable way of ensuring that your data is secure and private, even when using other apps or sites like Facebook without HTTPS protection.

In the future, when encryption standards are adopted more widely on websites and apps, it will keep your information safe from third parties like Internet service providers, who can see what sites you visit without an encrypted connection. It turns out that both DNS protocol which authenticates connections between two devices by checking them against a block list of known good sources or SNI TLS server name indication (TLS S vetting), used in most modern HTTPS enabled applications, including for SPDY/HTTP2, replaces unencrypted data with random characters creating thus anonymous transaction identification number. Hence, there is no way for ISPs and other third parties to identify the content transferred across these networks.

A VPN is an excellent way to protect your privacy and security online, both for personal users and businesses. By using one, you entrust the company with protecting this data rather than risking exposure from ISPs like ATT or Verizon, who sell customer information and regularly manage content. Most subscription-based VPN providers prioritize their business model toward keeping users safe theres no better investment for peace of mind when it comes down to private browsing sessions.

A VPN provides private, encrypted DNS, which you can use to surf the Internet in privacy. Not only does this provider protect your identity with their no-logging policy and PwC audit, but it also runs its VPN servers on RAM when possible for extra security measures that will keep you safe from any prying eyes or governments.

The modern world is tumultuous and dangerous, so you can never let your guard down. When it comes time for safety online or on the go, some tools can help keep hackers at bay without compromising privacy and one such resourceful tool is a VPN service.

Whether at home or on the go, it is essential to protect your personal information when using public WiFi networks. This includes making sure that all communication on these connections runs through an encrypted tunnel so others cannot intercept what we say and do online.

The importance of VPNs during a worldwide pandemic such as we are experiencing now makes them more essential than ever before. No matter where you are, your VPN is always with you. Whether its to bypass government censorship or stay safe on public WiFi networks, theres never been a better time than now for connecting life back into the web.

A savvy digital citizen can utilize this powerful little tool in so many ways. Thanks to one-button convenience and security features like encryption protocols, a VPN protects our data from hackers trying to snoop sneakily around online while hiding behind fake accounts.

There are many ways to protect your data. You can use a VPN, but its not the only tool in this arsenal. A VPN can help you stay safe and secure on any device, but its important not to rely solely on this precaution. Many other tools are available for protecting our privacy, such as HTTPS. And dont forget that your passwords need constant maintenance. Make sure they are strong and change them frequently. On my privacy-news website, Im excited to help you stay safe online. We have created detailed guides with tips on improving peoples mobile security, browsing anonymously (or not), using the Tor browser, and more. Youll also find articles that discuss software tools that will protect your devices or accounts from hackers while providing insights into keeping personal information private when communicating digitally.

I always recommend a VPN to my clients. They are the best way for you to protect your identity, traffic logs, and information online.

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Home Articles Yes, the Internet has become safer but a VPN is still needed

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Yes, the Internet has become safer but a VPN is still needed - TechGenix

A training company boss was jailed today after being caught with the "most serious" category of child porn.

Raymond Coney, 69, admitted downloading child abuse photos from the dark web using the so-called Tor browser, which is supposed to hide Internet-users' identities.

Falkirk Sheriff Court heard that police armed with a search warrant raided Coney's home in Buchlyvie, West Stirlingshire, last August (2020) acting on information received.

The court was told more than 40 child abuse images classed as Category A - the most serious kind of child porn - were found on his computer and mobile phone, together with nearly 70 category B and C photos.

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Coney pleaded guilty to downloading child porn at his home, Claymires Cottage, Buchlyvie, over a period of more than two and a half years, between January 2018 and August 3rd last year (2020) when the raid took place.

Coney is listed by Companies House as having been at the time a director of education firm Training Academy.UK Ltd, which was voluntarily dissolved on May 11th this year (2021).

Sheriff Craig Harris jailed Coney for seven months, and placed him on the sex offender's register for 10 years.

Detective Inspector Adrian Ure, of Police Scotlands National Child Abuse Investigation Unit, said: "Raymond Coneys behaviour was appalling and demonstrated a complete and utter disregard for the young victims depicted in the images he was viewing.

In committing these crimes, he mistakenly believed that the internet would provide anonymity and allow him to undertake his offending undetected.

"However as a result of our investigation he will now rightly face the consequences of his actions.

Any form of child sexual abuse is a serious criminal offence and is a priority for Police Scotland. We encourage anyone with concerns about a child at risk of abuse, or a potential victim, to contact police immediately."

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Scots businessman caught with the 'most serious' category of child abuse images jailed - Scottish Daily Record

19 Kids and Counting stars Anna and Josh Duggar welcomed their seventh child together last month, less than five weeks before Josh is scheduled to go on trial for multiple child porn0graphy charges.

Anna made the announcement on multiple social media platforms earlier today. She posted a photo of little Madyson and wrote: VerifiedMeet little Madyson Lily Duggar!

33-year-old Anna shared the same photo in her Instagram stories and added some additional details. Madyson was born at 2:39AM on October 23. She weighed seven pounds, nine ounces and measured 20 inches long at birth.

Heres Anna Duggars Instagram post:

Madyson joins older siblings Mackynzie Rene (12), Michael James (10), Marcus Anthony (8), Meredith Grace (6), Mason Garrett (4), and Maryella Hope (almost 2). The name choice is already stirring up a bit of controversy given the fact that one of Joshs numerous scandals involved his use of the mistress seeking website Ashley Madison.

Josh is currently living with friends of the Duggar family as he awaits trial. He has a GPS tracking device and is only allowed to be around his children if Anna is present. He is not allowed to be around any other minors, but he is allowed to attend church, court, etc.

Josh and Anna Duggar revealed the pregnancy back in April, just days before the former Executive Director of The Family Research Council Action was arrested for child porn0graphy after federal investigators found disturbing images and video on a computer at Joshs business.

At the time of the pregnancy announcement, there was a lot of criticism online about the couple having a seventh child while they appeared to be having financial difficulties due in part to the numerous scandals surrounding Josh. The pregnancy drew much more criticism when it was revealed that Josh and Anna knew about the federal investigation since November of 2019 when federal agents initially raided Joshs used car lot and confiscated his computer and other devices.

If you are curious about the specific allegations against Josh Duggar, here is an excerpt from our previous post with details from Joshs bond hearing:

As part of the four-hour Zoom hearing, investigators shared details about the allegations against Josh Duggar and the investigation that resulted in his arrest.

Little Rock police were alerted to someone downloading child porn0graphy to a computer in Northwest Arkansas via a peer-to-peer file sharing network.

Homeland Security Investigations were able to track the suspected computer to Josh Duggars used car lot in Springdale. HSI received a federal search warrant for the property, which was served in November of 2019.

From THV 11:

Agents searched the property and seized multiple computers and Duggars personal iPhone. Faulkner claimed Duggar used a Linux partition on one of the computers at the car lot to get around software that alerted his wife if he viewed porn0graphy. After analyzing the seized materials, Faulkner says his team found several files depicting child p0rn on a computer that Duggar had accessed. Faulkner stated some of the types of images located on Duggars computer ranked among the worst he has seen in his career investigating child porn0graphy.

Josh was not told why the car lot was being investigated, but he specifically asked investigators if it was because child porn0graphy had been downloaded to his computer. He also admitted to investigators that he had a TOR browser installed on his computer, which would give him access to the dark web and peer-to-peer networks.

Homeland Security Special Agent Gerald Faulkner said that investigators found a two-minute video on Joshs computer that included two underage girls and a man engaging in sexual acts. There were also 65 photos of a girl consistent with child pornography.

Josh Duggars trial is scheduled to begin on November 30. Its unknown if the trial will be televised like that of another TLC reality star, 90 Day Fiances Geoffrey Paschel.

Asa Hawks is a writer and editor for Starcasm. You can contact Asa via Twitter, Facebook, or email at starcasmtips(at)yahoo.com

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Anna and Josh Duggar welcomed daughter Madyson Lily on October 23, their 7th child * starcasm.net - Starcasm

Tor is a network of virtual tunnels that allows people and groups to improve their privacy and security on the Internet. It also enables software developers to create new communication tools with built-in privacy features. Tor provides the foundation for a range of applications that allow organizations and individuals to share information over public networks without compromising their privacy.

Note: You can also download the latest final version, Tor Browser 10.5.6 here.

Individuals use Tor to keep websites from tracking them and their family members, or to connect to news sites, instant messaging services, or the like when these are blocked by their local Internet providers. Tor's hidden services let users publish web sites and other services without needing to reveal the location of the site. Individuals also use Tor for socially sensitive communication: chat rooms and web forums for rape and abuse survivors, or people with illnesses.

Journalists use Tor to communicate more safely with whistleblowers and dissidents. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) use Tor to allow their workers to connect to their home website while they're in a foreign country, without notifying everybody nearby that they're working with that organization.

Groups such as Indymedia recommend Tor for safeguarding their members' online privacy and security. Activist groups like the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) recommend Tor as a mechanism for maintaining civil liberties online. Corporations use Tor as a safe way to conduct competitive analysis, and to protect sensitive procurement patterns from eavesdroppers. They also use it to replace traditional VPNs, which reveal the exact amount and timing of communication. Which locations have employees working late? Which locations have employees consulting job-hunting websites? Which research divisions are communicating with the company's patent lawyers?

A branch of the U.S. Navy uses Tor for open source intelligence gathering, and one of its teams used Tor while deployed in the Middle East recently. Law enforcement uses Tor for visiting or surveilling web sites without leaving government IP addresses in their web logs, and for security during sting operations.

Welcome Screen

Our old screen had way too much information for the users, leading many of them to spend great time confused about what to do. Some users at the paper experiment spent up to 40min confused about what they needed to be doing here. Besides simplifying the screen and the message, to make it easier for the user to know if they need to configure anything or not, we also did a 'brand refresh' bringing our logo to the launcher.

Censorship circumvention configuration

This is one of the most important steps for a user who is trying to connect to Tor while their network is censoring Tor. We also worked really hard to make sure the UI text would make it easy for the user to understand what a bridge is for and how to configure to use one. Another update was a little tip we added at the drop-down menu (as you can see below) for which bridge to use in countries that have very sophisticated censorship methods.

Proxy help information

The proxy settings at our Tor Launcher configuration wizard is an important feature for users who are under a network that demands such configuration. But it can also lead to a lot of confusion if the user has no idea what a proxy is. Since it is a very important feature for users, we decided to keep it in the main configuration screen and introduced a help prompt with an explanation of when someone would need such configuration.

As part of our work with the UX team, we will also be coordinating user testing of this new UI to continue iterating and make sure we are always improving our users' experience. We are also planning a series of improvements not only for the Tor Launcher flow but for the whole browser experience (once you are connected to Tor) including a new user onboarding flow. And last but not least we are streamlining both our mobile and desktop experience: Tor Browser 7.5 adapted the security slider design we did for mobile bringing the improved user experience to the desktop as well.

What's New:

All Platforms

Windows + OS X + Linux

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Tor Browser (Alpha) 11.0.9 Download | TechSpot

In May, a ransomware attack shut down a pipeline carrying 45 percent of the fuel used on the US East Coast. The Colonial Pipeline incident led to panic buying and heightened fears about the threat posed by simple hacks to national infrastructure. Now, the US State Department is offering a bounty of up to $10 million to anyone who can supply the identity or location of the leaders of the group responsible an outfit known as DarkSide.

In addition to the $10 million bounty, the state department is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of any individual conspiring to participate in or attempting to participate in a DarkSide variant ransomware incident. What exactly that means isnt clear. Is a DarkSide variant ransomware incident one that involves the groups hacking tools? What if the software has been altered slightly? It seems deliberately ambiguous, allowing the State Department to cast as wide a net as possible.

The offer is the latest example of the US using monetary rewards to try and fight serious cybercrime. These bounties are offered under the Rewards for Justice (RfJ) program, which was originally established in 1984 to target international terrorism. The US evidently thinks cybercriminals now warrant the same level of attention and, in July, the State Department began offering bounties of up to $10 million through RfJ for information on individuals who participate in malicious cyber activities against US critical infrastructure.

(For anyone interested, the State Department has a Tor-based tip line, accessible at he5dybnt7sr6cm32xt77pazmtm65flqy6irivtflruqfc5ep7eiodiad.onion. This URL requires the use of a Tor browser and wont work with ordinary browsers like Chrome or Firefox.)

The ambiguous nature of the State Departments latest bounty is related to the fluid nature of hacking groups. These outfits can dissolve and reform under different monikers and identities as easily as someone creating a new username, but they often use related methods and software that can be used to trace a common lineage.

DarkSide, for example, ceased all activities after the Colonial Pipeline incident. The group seemed caught off-guard by the magnitude of the attack, and even issued a formal apology for the social consequences of what they did. But according to US cybersecurity experts, members of the group may have simply rebranded as an outfit named BlackMatter, which appeared on the scene weeks after DarkSide dropped off the radar, wielding similar weapons and tactics. Presumably, the state departments bounty will apply to them, too.

See the article here:
US government offers $10 million bounty for information on Colonial Pipeline hackers - The Verge

The Tor browser is an internet browser that allows users to surf the web anonymously. It also gives you access to the dark web. Tor is a worldwide network of servers specifically made for private communication. If you want to get started with the Tor browser, you can follow these steps:

Youre now ready to browse all corners of the world wide web with the Tor browser. If youre not sure which VPN will protect you best while using Tor, wed like to recommend NordVPN:

For more information about Tor and a detailed installing guide, check out our full article below.

If youre interested in online privacy and anonymity, youve probably heard of Tor. To many, Tor is the basis of true freedom on the internet. But what is Tor exactly? How does it work and why would you use it? What are the main differences between the Tor browser and other privacy-related solutions, such as a VPN or a proxy server? Read all about it in this article!

The Tor browser is one of the most important tools to guarantee anonymous and free browsing on the internet. We fully understand youre excited to experiment with all the possibilities that come with Tor. However, some of those possibilities come with great risks. An example is the dark web. Tor gives you access to this dark part of the internet, but you shouldnt try to access it without knowing exactly what youre getting yourself into. Thats why, before telling you more about Tor, well show you some measures you can take to stay safe while using the Tor browser, especially when visiting the dark web.

First of all, make sure to check Tors security settings. Tor uses a very effective and reliable system of data encryption, as well see in a bit. Even so, using Tors security settings can make your online experience much safer. Secondly, even though this might be quite obvious to many, its important to never visit websites and click on links you dont trust. Of course, this is something you should keep in mind regardless of the browser and safety measures youre using. Lastly, we recommend you use a good and secure VPN, or virtual private network.

Using a VPN at the same time as Tor ensures your data is better encrypted. Moreover, the VPN also hides your IP address by displaying the IP of the VPN server youre using rather than your real, static IP-address. This means youre much safer while browsing. A VPN provider we recommend for additional safety while using the Tor browser is CyberGhost. This provider offers a very reliable and secure double-encryption system, is very affordable and even has a 45 days money-back guarantee. This means you can try it out to see if it works well for you without having to commit to a yearly subscription.

The team behind Tor (short for The Onion Router) provides free open-source software that helps you browse the internet anonymously. Originally the Tor network was developed with the help of the US navy. The network was developed to enable the US Navy and other military organizations to communicate anonymously online. These days, Tor mainly focuses its attention on its browser and the development of a few other privacy tools, which well briefly touch on later.

As we mentioned before, the Tor browser greatly benefits your online privacy and, up to a point, your security. The browser makes use of the vast world-wide server network that the Tor network consists of. When using the browser, your data goes through different Tor servers (or nodes). The traffic is heavily encrypted and slowly decoded one layer at a time at the different nodes. This means that whoever is trying to identify you based on your online traffic, will just stumble on the last server your data traffic passed through, the exit node. In other words: this browser makes it impossible, or at least very difficult, to identify its users.

In order to access the Tor network, you simply need to download the browser. Everything you do online while using the Tor-browser will automatically be encrypted and anonymized in the process described above.

One disadvantage thats often pointed out is that the Tor browser is generally much slower than your bare internet connection. Because your online traffic is sent through different nodes, your internet connection will have to go the long way around and therefore become significantly slower.

Though Tors developers originally created the software for military purposes, it has developed into a tool that can be useful to all especially to those who have something to hide or will otherwise benefit from online anonymity. Many journalists and political activists use it to avoid being prosecuted. Usually, these people live in countries where authorities might punish them for the thoughts and views they wish to share online.

Similarly, journalists use Tor to protect their sources. If a source does not want to risk being revealed, they can communicate sensitive information through the browser. Not just suppliers of information, but also consumers are to be found on Tor. Many people use it to access geo-restricted content, to bypass censorship and visit specific websites. After all, a lot of pages, such as those on the dark web, wont be visible to you when using a normal browser such as Safari or Firefox.

Another well-known group of people who use Tor are whistle-blowers. For instance, one of Tors most notable users and supporters is Edward Snowden, who revealed documents on classified surveillance programs in the US. Similarly, the browser can be used by employees to expose company or government secrets or address illicit or immoral activities.

While all of this might seem very positive, not everyone uses Tor for what one might call a noble cause. For instance, many hackers and cybercriminals use it to stay anonymous while conducting their illegal business. The anonymous browser is especially useful to criminals because it provides access to the dark web. This dark part of the internet contains multiple illegal networks such as the former illegal marketplace Silk Road. This used to be a vast network where people bought and sold all sorts of illegal items, such as illegal drugs and firearms. In short, many criminals use Tor to avoid getting caught when theyre going about their illegal activities.

Tor is not just used to gain anonymity as an internet user, but also to host websites that are only accessible through it. As such, any website that is hosted using the Tor network wont be indexed and found by popular search engines such as Google and Bing. This makes them part of the dark web.

The use of Tor itself is completely legal in most jurisdictions, especially in the western world. However, as we mentioned, some people use it for illegal activities, because of the anonymity the software helps users achieve. Using Tor doesnt make these activities any less illegal. Therefore, we want to strongly advise you to refrain from such practices. For more information on Tors legality, wed like to refer you to this article on the topic.

Tor is useful, but definitely has its imperfections. Browsing with Tor isnt as anonymous as you might hope. Although the people at Tor are constantly working to improve their protection, their software has been cracked in the past. The developers have stressed that it wasnt their network and system that had been breached, but rather individual browsers. Nevertheless, although this might give users some peace of mind, this still shows Tor is not perfect as a stand-alone privacy measure.

With the help of internet providers, law enforcement is sometimes able to expose the identity of users. However, they only do so selectively. When something fishy is going on, official organizations might try this method to expose a website or individual. As long as you stick to the law, you should be fine. However, you should realize that using the Tor browser, which many associate with illegal activities on the dark web, might make authorities more inclined to try to track you.

Privacy doesnt necessarily equal security. Tor cannot guarantee youll be safe from cyber attacks and cyber criminals while using their browser. The Tor network is incredibly hard to hack, which is amplified by the fact that its code is open-source. However, the same does not hold true for your browser, which is relatively easy to hack. Even man-in-the-middle style attacks are still possible on Tor with the help of ISPs. Fortunately, the browsers developers are more than aware of these risks and are constantly working to improve the Tor software to make it easier for users to protect themselves.

If you want to use Tor, always make sure to download its most recent version. Its clear that it has limitations, but the organisation is also constantly working towards better, safer software. Youll only be able to benefit from this if you keep your system as up to date as possible.

For the average internet user, the anonymity Tor offers isnt enough of an incentive to start using the software. This is mostly because the encryption makes your connection significantly slower. Besides, as we mentioned previously, carrying out online surveillance still costs time and money, which means governments cant and very likely dont even want to spy on every single one of their civilians. They have to focus on suspicious online behaviour instead. Thats why most people who spend their time online to, lets say, watch funny cat videos and google the closest pizza place, will most likely not benefit much from using the Tor browser.

While you can browse relatively anonymous with Tor, the browser does not anonymize nor protect all your other internet activities. Applications that run outside your browser will not be protected by the Tor network. If you want to make sure all your online activity is encrypted and anonymized, a VPN might be a better solution for you. Especially if youre trying to secure your connection from cyber criminals when using a public WiFi-network, for instance, a VPN could come in very handy.

A VPN allows you to use the internet without restrictions. It helps you bypass any geographical censorship and geographical restrictions in general, such as the restrictions enforced by Netflix. Moreover, a VPN encrypts all your data traffic and makes sure you can browse and download completely anonymously. Most decent VPNs also have far superior internet speeds compared to the Tor browser. This means that streaming, downloading and gaming are generally much easier and less frustrating with a VPN.

There are, however, also some things a VPN cannot do. It wont give you access to the dark web, first of all. If you use a VPN while visiting the dark web, it does help keep you safe from malware, online attacks and other dangers. The second advantage of Tor over VPNs is that the first is completely free. On the contrary, most good VPNs ask a (usually small) compensation a month.

Whether you should use Tor greatly depends on your needs. Tor is free, easy to use and usually very effective privacy software. It gives you access to the dark web and has several options to protect your online safety. On the other hand, it is quite slow and opens the door to many, many online dangers. If you would rather have a fast connection, for instance for streaming, downloading and gaming, we recommend a VPN. Feel free to have a look at our VPN reviews and comparison tool, to see which VPN would suit your wishes best.

In countries with a strict regime such as China, Russia and Iran, attempts are often made to block VPNs. The government wants to keep an eye on what citizens do online. These countries also make attempts to block Tor; however, this is a lot more complex. It requires identifying and blocking the destination nodes traffic travels trough.

China is one of the few countries to have successfully blocked Tor. By blocking access points one by one, China is trying to deny the population access to Tor.

The governments of Venezuela and Ethiopia are also trying to block the Tor network. Venezuela is not only blocking direct connections, but also connections via a bridge. Tor-bridges are private Tor servers that can be used to bypass blockages.

Russia and Iran are constantly trying to restrict access to the Tor network as well.

Apart from Tor and a VPN, you could also choose to increase your privacy and online security by using a proxy server. However, generally, proxy servers only work well for specific purposes and situations, such as accessing The Pirate Bay. Even then, many consider them both less effective and less secure than both Tor and a good VPN. Nevertheless, people often wonder how a proxy differs from Tor. Thats why well have a look at the main differences here.

A proxy server, much like a VPN or Tor, is another way to guide your online traffic through a different server that (figuratively) stands between your computer and your datas destination server. This server is the proxy, which is offered to you by the person who owns it. The setup used for this is often quite simple: everyone using the service sends their data through the same server. All of those people get the same fake IP address.

People tend to like proxies because many of them are free to use. This doesnt mean that proxies actually are the best solution to your online problems, however. Proxy servers only offer a certain degree of anonymity and online safety. For example, proxies generally dont encrypt your data like Tor and VPNs do. Moreover, the privacy a proxy offers isnt nearly as reliable as that, of say, a good and secure VPN such as PIA.

Another disadvantage of using a proxy server is that the servers host can see exactly what youre doing online. In theory, they could even log this information, potentially causing you all sorts of trouble. Thats why, if youre intent on using a proxy server, you should pick one which is under control of someone you really trust. More often than not, you wont know the owners identity, which makes this hard to do. He or she could be collecting your data or even injecting ads into the pages you visit for all you know. In short, a proxy server doesnt offer you the level of privacy and security as other solutions.

Convinced you want to get Tor? Installing Tor on your device isnt difficult at all. Follow the next few steps and youll be able to use the browser in a matter of minutes.

Step 1: Go to the website and click on the download button in the top right corner of your screen.

Step 2: Youll find yourself on the download page. Select your operating system by choosing one of the four icons shown below. As you can see, you can opt for either Windows, Mac, Linux or Android. If you want to download the browser in a specific language, you can click Download in another language or platform.

Step 3: A file will be downloaded onto your computer. Open this file to start the installation process. Choose your preferred language, then press OK.

Step 4: The Browser Setup will appear. Choose the destination folder (usually you dont have to change anything here and the installer will automatically create a new folder for it) and press Install.

Step 5: During the installation process, you can opt for Tor to start automatically once youre done installing it. If you didnt do this, youll have to open it yourself by looking up the program. The first time the browser opens, youll see the screen shown below. In most cases, you can just click Connect and get started. However, are you currently in a country that actively censors Tor, such as Turkey, China or Egypt? Then its best to click Configure first. The software will help you configure your browser so you wont be bothered by your countrys online restrictions as much.

Step 6: Once youre done configuring, press Connect and your Tor browser will open. You can now use it freely.

Apart from the browser, Tor has quite a few other projects that all have something to do with online privacy. The Tor project, as the team is called, is constantly working on ways to protect their users online privacy and fighting online freedom. An example of one of their projects is Orbot, which is a free proxy application for Android devices. It uses the same network of nodes as the browser to transport your information over the world wide web. Orbot both helps your online privacy and encrypts your internet traffic. Just like the browser, but for Android.

Another project of the Tor team is OONI and focuses on detecting online restrictions. OONI, which stands for Open Observatory of Network Interference, monitors internet censorship around the world. Since 2012, it has been developing free software that is designed to detect online blocking. The software doesnt protect your device, nor does it bypass the restrictions it finds. It is simply a mean to get an insight into the global situation surrounding online restrictions and censorship. You can learn more about OONIs findings on the OONI website.

Not all projects are still up and running. The Tor project once created a chat program that encrypts all communication. They called it Tor Messenger. With this program, you could still use all your regular services such as Google Talk, Facebook Messenger, and Twitter, but your chat data would become anonymous. No logs could be kept, either, so your messages were all completely safe. However, updates of the Tor Messenger have stopped as of April 2018, meaning the software isnt as secure as it used to be. This is why we dont recommend using it any longer.

Tor is a great champion in the world of online privacy. Its browser provides users with the freedom to visit any website they like and offers them a certain degree of online anonymity. However, this protection is limited to their browser and does not cover all internet activity, like a VPN would. Moreover, Tor is often closely watched by law enforcement, because illegitimate businesses and criminals often use the browser for illegal activities. The service is free and easy to download, but does have its limitations. If you decide to use the browser, always be careful with unregulated websites and protect yourself against malware with decent antivirus software. We also recommend using other safety measures in combination with it, such as a good VPN. If you protect yourself well and think your choices through, the Tor browser can offer a fun, anonymous, and free internet experience.

The Tor Browser: frequently asked questions

Have you got a question about the Tor browser that youd like a quick answer for? Have a look at our FAQ down below!

Tor (The Onion Router) is a worldwide network of servers used by people who want to greatly increase their privacy and internet freedom. After all, the Tor browser ensures your data traffic passes through different servers (nodes) located all over the world. This makes it a lot more difficult for online entities to track Tor users. Read our article on Tor for more information.

Tor is used for a great number of different reasons. For instance, many journalists in countries without freedom of speech use the Tor browser to report safely and anonymously on sensitive topics. The Tor browser is also used to circumvent other types of online censorship. Furthermore, there are also people who simply use the Tor browser to browse the internet anonymously.

The Tor browser offers users more anonymity by guiding their data traffic through different servers, located all over the world. This ensures your IP-address changes at every server (node), making it way harder for websites to trace back where your data traffic originates from (you). For more information on how Tor works exactly, read our article What is Tor?.

Yes, Tors main disadvantage is its lower internet speeds. Since Tor guides your traffic through different servers all over the world (nodes), it can greatly decrease your internet speeds. To people who want to browse the web more safely, anonymously and freely, but with good internet speeds, we recommend using a VPN. This privacy and internet freedom solution offers, depending on the provider, better connection speeds and better unblocking options.

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The Tor Browser: What is it and why would you use it ...

What Is Tor?

The Onion Router or Tor is a network that enables a user to stay anonymous on the internet and get rid of any possible surveillance, user identification, or location tracking while using the internet. You can access the Tor network with the help of a modified Mozilla Firefox ESR web browser.

Tor allows a person to browse the web anonymously by veiling the actual identity of the user. It protects the user from any traffic analysis and network spying.

Tor is perhaps the most popular and secure option available for anonymous internet connectivity. To reduce the confusion, here we are talking about the Tor network, not the Tor web browser, which is used to access the same.

Tor uses the principle of Onion Routing, which was developed by Paul Syverson, Michael G. Reed, and David Goldschlag at the United States Naval Research Laboratory in 1990s. Further development was carried out under the financial roof of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).

Tor Project Inc. is a non-profit organization that currently maintains Tor and is responsible for its development. It has received funds from the US government primarily, and additional aid from the Swedish Government and different NGOs & individual sponsors.

Tor uses the concept of the Onion Routing method in which the user data is first encrypted and then transferred through different relays present in the Tor network. Thus, it creates multi-layered encryption (layers like an onion) and a hard-to-follow path to keep the identity of the user safe. As a result, nobody can link your identity to any single point.

One encryption layer is decrypted at each successive Tor relay, and the remaining data is forwarded to any random relay until it reaches its destination server. For the destination server, the last Tor node/exit relay appears as the origin of the data. It is thus tough to trace the identity of the user or the server by any surveillance system acting as the middleman.

Other than providing anonymity to standalone users, Tor can also provide anonymity to websites and servers in the form of Tor Hidden Services. Also, P2P applications like BitTorrent can be configured to use the Tor network and download torrent files.

Also Read: How To Share Files Anonymously Using Tors Darknet And OnionShare?

No. Tor browser and dark web arent illegal on their own. However, if you end up performing some illegal activity on the dark web using Tor, thatll surely invite trouble. So, as always, we recommend that you use this technology to perform legal actions and enhance your privacy.

The NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden used Tor to leak information about PRISM to The Guardian and The Washington Post.

However, the story is not all good-good. Tor faces criticism for the reason that it acts as a medium for different illegal activities like data breaching, drug dealing, gambling, being home to dark web sites. Tor is also used by criminal minds to communicate over the internet while keeping their identity hidden, which makes it difficult for the security agencies to trace them.

The U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) has called Tor the King of high secure, low latency Internet anonymity. And it has received similar comments by BusinessWeek magazine, perhaps the most effective means of defeating the online surveillance efforts of intelligence agencies around the world.

Another speculation made is that Tor takes its funding from the U.S. Government, which may lead to the assumption that NSA may have compromised the identities of individual Tor users. However, Tors former executive director Andrew Lewman disclaimed any confederations with NSA.

Various claims have been made about compromising Tors anonymity and security from time to time. The most famous one was the Bad Apple Attack, in which the researchers claimed to have identified around 10k IP addresses of active BitTorrent users who were connected via Tor.

The Heartbleed bug was behind another major compromise in April 2014, which halted the Tor network for several days.

Traffic Fingerprinting is a method used to analyze web traffic by analyzing the patterns, responses, and packets in a particular direction. This technique can be used to attack the Tor network by making the attackers computer act as the guard.

The main vulnerability was found at its exit points, where the level of security is very low as compared to the rest of the Tor network.

Also Read: TOR Anonymity: Things Not To Do While Using TOR

Tor Project Inc. has released Tor Browser, which is a modification of an Extended Support Release (ESR) version of the Mozilla Firefox browser. The browser is portable so that it can be used from external media and also reduces the hassel of installation.

Tor Browser removes the browsing history and cookies after every use, thus reducing the risk of any cookie tracking.We can set-up SOCKS (Socket Secure) based applications to use the Tor network by configuring them with a loop-back address.

Its also known as the dark web browser since it lets users browse the so-called dark web sites that accessible on the regular web.

The Tor browser is available for various desktop operating systems, including Windows, Linux, and macOS. You can visit this link to download Tor Browser latest version for Windows, Linux, and macOS.

The Tor setup will create a folder named Tor Browser on your Desktop. Open the folder, and run the shortcut file to use the Tor Browser.

For Linux, youll have to extract the downloaded file, either using the command line or a file extractor application.

Tor Browser official Tor app for Android

Orbot a free proxy app with Tor for Android devices.

Orfox a mobile version of Tor Browser for Android devices. (Discontinued)

The Guardian Project, a global developer community founded by Nathan Freitas, is to be credited for the development of Orfox.

A Tor browser app for iOS created by Tor Project core contributor Mike Tigas.

I2P and Freenet are other anonymity networks which can act as Tor alternatives. Also, Tails and Subgraph OS are Linux-based distributions with built-in Tor support. In the past, Hornet was also an anonymity network that provided higher network speeds compared to Tor.

To know more about these alternatives, please visit this link.

Tor has proved to be an excellent medium for safe, secure, and anonymous web presence available to a user at no cost. The developers of Tor didnt intend it to become a hotbed of illegal activities, but evil-minded people have leveraged Tor for their benefits such as selling unlawful stuff on the dark websites. The Tor project has led to an optimistic approach towards censorship and surveillance-free internet.

You can use Tor if you want to conceal your identity on the web or access some websites that blocked in your region. But refrain yourself from doing anything thats above the law because nothing is fool-proof, and they can still catch you. Also, accessing your social media accounts over Tor can expose your identity.

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Tor Explained: What is Tor? How Does It Work? Is It Illegal?

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The concepts and practical applications surrounding internet anonymity have trickled down from specialist computer departments to the average consumer in the past years, as great technologies tend to do. Now, millions are aware of the dangers of cybercrime and privacy intrusions that take place daily across the span of the global internet. Put another way, internet anonymity has become just as important as being as anonymous and safe as possible with your financial, medical, and other personal online transactions. The reason for this is quite simple; the internet is out of control, literally, and no oversight system guarantees your privacy or safety while wading into the internet ocean. The internet network was much simpler back in the day of perimeter defenses, before the arrival of the cloud risks, third-party risks, and mobile app risks of today.

Primarily, when you start searching for the term internet anonymity online you will be faced with the following results; a bunch of blogs on how to stay anonymous online, anonymity rights, ethics, and policies, and most often you will be hit with results pointing to VPNs (the ads are also everywhere). Virtual Private Network technology or VPN has been around for over a decade now but only recently has it been adopted and marketed by companies that target home users (consumers).

However, in 2021 the popularity of VPNs has started to wane slightly, likewise, consumers trust towards VPN applications has suffered the same fate. This is partly due to the technology being over-commercialized, and partly since trust towards VPNs has fallen as large companies have started to buy out small VPN specialist vendors. Lack of honesty and transparency as well as some VPN companies inability to protect customer data has added to that burning fire. Finally, the internet simply doesnt like VPNs, nor do companies like Netflix, search engines, data collection agencies let alone authorities. One example of this is when you use a VPN and you are bombarded with captchas to prove your identity.

As a result, this is why it is key to understand that there are some alternatives to using a VPN. This does not mean that VPNs should be avoided or that the technology is no longer viable -far from it. It just means that alternatives should be researched, and considered.

VPN technology, which is a tunneling technology with its foundations in PPTP or Peer to Peer Tunneling Protocol from the 90s, is being used by 150 million people in the U.S. alone. An estimated 30% of all internet users on Earth have used a VPN at some point, and usage of the 20-year-old technology is rising every year. If you are looking for an alternative to a VPN, this means that you have thorough experience and knowledge surrounding VPNs. It could also mean that you simply want to use something else, just like a lot of people nowadays replace Googles search engine, Facebook as social media, or WhatsApp as a messaging service for more transparent alternatives. The same applies to VPNs, and there are a few solutions that the tech-savvy insider community uses.

Fundamentally, VPN technology and VPN protocols are solid, and reputable vendors usually do deliver on their promises of anonymity, security, and no-logging. However, nothing is foolproof. There are indeed more technically secure and anonymous ways of connecting to the internet, but keep in mind they require a bit more effort to set up and/or they may incur additional costs. Some of these alternatives are;

Using a proxy service is an alternative to using a VPN, and some anonymity enthusiasts will chain proxies together, claiming that this technique does not allow DNS leaks. However, free anonymous proxy services found online should not be used as they can include trackers and malware.

Tor is a military-grade anonymity browser that uses several layers of encryption and nodes to completely block any browser fingerprinting and IP location queries. In most cases, using Tor is even better than using a VPN, except where speed is concerned. Combining Tor with bridges, Tails, and even with a VPN can boost anonymity to even higher levels.

Using virtualization/VM, or sandboxing, means running your entire digital environment on an isolated separate instance that is not your local machine, rather a Virtual Machine. Running any of the above combos on a VM removes your physical computer from the equation, although it is difficult to set up and takes up system resources.

Which anonymity techniques you use completely depend on what you want to achieve. There is no simple one-click solution to simply disappear on the internet without a trace, but there are multi-step ways to do this with relative confidence that you are, indeed, invisible. In China, for example, where VPNs are not wanted, people are resorting to alternative tunneling techniques like Shadowsocks. Others who do not want to route their entire internet connection via VPN vendors like to use VM desktops that use Tor routing technology.

Another example is this; hardcore anonymity buffs will go for Tails software and something like libreboot and use temporary accounts for communications. For most people (that are not hiding from the government) it is advisable to stick with reputable, no-log VPNs. The no-log part is the most important feature that a VPN vendor must respect. Thoroughly researching whether a VPN company has the external security audits to back up their security stance and promises is critical for any user who values their privacy and safety. Otherwise, a step up from VPNs is the Tor browser. Finally, some people have chosen to host their VPNs, although this process does require a bit of financial outlay and learning resources.

See more here:
Alternatives to Using a VPN That Provided Excellent Anonymity While Online - TechBullion

Tor is free and open-source software for enabling anonymous communication by directing Internet traffic through a free, worldwide, volunteer overlay network consisting of more than seven thousand relay servers in order to conceal a users location and usage from anyone conducting network surveillance or traffic analysis.

Tor used to stand for The Onion Router; however, this acronym has since been removed in favour of a simple name of the same spelling (Tor).

The Onion Router is a reference to the several layers of encryption wrapped around a users internet traffic.

The dark web is of course a reference to websites/services that use the Internet but require specific software, configurations, or authorisation to access them. Tor is the largest of these services/private networks.

These restricted websites hosted on Tor use to be called Hidden Services but are now called Onion Services.

Websites hosted as Onion Services are anonymous, so their location cannot be tracked. As a result, Onion Services are often used to sell stolen credit card information, sell drugs/illegal paraphernalia, or are used by whistle-blowers to publish stolen information or communicate with journalists.

Some examples of Onion Services hosting illegal content include the Silk Road, Agora, and the Tor Carding Forum.

To access these sites, one simply needs to download Tor, open the Tor browser and enter the domain name (.onion domain similar to .com). Due to these restrictions, the dark web is not indexed by web search engines/content change and detection services like Google/Google Alerts.

AlerTor was created by Luke Millanta, a Sydney-based software developer, esports entrepreneur, and the current chief technology officer at Hive Gaming.

Millanta explains how this technology works and writes as follows from this point forward

The system I have developed, AlterTor, allows for the indexing of Onion Services and may assist in tracking illegal activity across the Tor network.

AlerTor is an open source content change detection and notification service that has been developed to specifically monitor Tor-based Onion Services (the dark web) for particular keywords.

AlerTor can be used in a number of different ways:

To be alerted when your company is being mentioned on dark web forums or message boards.

To track user activity across one or multiple forums or message boards.

To detect illegal activity (sales of drugs, stolen credit cards etc.).

To monitor extremist forums for information relating to protests (both the pre-planning and the aftermath where people often brag about what they have done).

There are three main components to AlerTor:

A database for storing both the user inputs (alert strings) and a list of Onion Services.

A data cache for storing text-only (individual page source code) caches of Onion Services.

A Python service that:Is able to crawl and cache Onion Services listed in the database. It can also append newly discovered Onion Services to the database (if website1.onion links to website2.onion, the service checks to see if website2.onion is present in the database table. If it is not, it will be added and subsequently cached). Plus it can also scan newly cached/updated pages for alert strings and notify (by email) users to the presence of any alert strings.

So How many sites does AlerTor have access to? AlerTor is able to access and scan an infinite number of websites, just like any web crawler or content change detection service.

At the moment, however, due to the service still being in somewhat of an MVP stage, the service has only had a small period of time to grow. At the moment AlerTor monitors just over 200 Onion Services, approximately half of which are engaged in some sort of criminal activity (drug marketplaces/carder message boards etc).

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Slicing open The Onion Router (Tor) with no tears - ComputerWeekly.com

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. Its sometimes called the underbelly of the internet. The dark web.It is made up of a series of websites hidden from the general public, yet accessible to anyone across the world.

For those whove studied its secrets, the dark web can be a place where criminal activity can go on without the eyes of the law watching.

Dr. Shannon McMurtrey, a professor of cyber security at Drury University, says the dark web serves different purposes depending on where you live.

In a lot of countries where free speech is limited and the censorship is heavy, the dark web is a way for people to get access to information without the worry of censorship, says McMurtrey. However, If you live in a country that has an open, free internet and you can just get online and search for whatever you want, there tends to be more criminal activity that takes place on the dark web.

The dark web was originally created by the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory to ensure operatives could communicate with each other without being tracked.

The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory open-sourced the software for whats now the dark web in 2004. Its been managed by a non-profit called the Tor Project in Massachusetts. McMurtrey says it gained popularity in the U.S. due to the dark web allowing criminals to buy, sell and trade without law enforcement watching.

Passwords, credit card numbers, social security numbers, its all available online. Certainly, the drug trade is what made it famous, when the Silk Road was taken down that was probably when it came on the radar for most people.

The dark web can be accessed through a specific browser called Onion browser or Tor Browser. McMurtrey says its similar to the Google Chrome and Firefox browsers we use every day, only this one is able to access sites you wouldnt find on the surface of the internet.

McMurtrey says a majority of the dark web is innocent citizens from other countries looking for ways to access an everyday website that are blocked by their governments firewall.

However, he says the minority of the dark webs content can be traumatizing for some people.

Theres no end to human depravity, thats one thing that history has taught us and unfortunately the dark web is a magnet for human depravity. Certainly, there are marketplaces on the web for things that are stomach-turning and theres a lot of things that are sold on the dark web online that shouldnt be.

When using the dark web, your computers location cannot be tracked, but McMurtrey says there may be some government agencies sophisticated enough to be capable of tracking your entry and exit points from the Tor browser.

Someone with sufficient resources might be able to time and track traffic that goes into the dark web and comes out of the dark web and draw some conclusions about where that person might be. So, I wouldnt say conclusively that you can be tracked, but I certainly would encourage people to have good intentions when they use the technology.

While McMurtrey says the dark web can be a useful tool to access information or discuss topics with privacy, he says theres little reason a typical U.S. citizen would need to use it.

There are things that you just dont want to see, you dont want to be a part of and you can stumble across it without necessarily trying so when you start digging into those websites that you cant get to with a normal web browser, you dont know whats going to be there until the page loads, and theres no reason to do that.

Read more:
What is the dark web? - fox4kc.com