If you're tired of the feeling of prying eyes following you to sell something, then it's time for you to find out what the Tor browser is.
Personal information left by the user in social networks, online stores, on the websites of government organizations and simply in search engines, is of great interest, first of all, to the same search companies. They process user preferences in order to improve their algorithms and improve the quality of search results.
In addition, hungry attackers roam the depths of the Internet who want to gain access to the data of your bank cards and electronic wallets.
Marketers also contribute to tracking your movements on the network: it is very important for them to find out what you can sell based on the queries that you continue to drive into search engines. One has only to enter your mailbox, and there are already very important offers to go there and buy something, having previously studied at such and such courses, not free, of course.
One can only guess, but, most likely, your information is also interesting for the special services, at least from the position of total control over the population, of course, for the sake of national security. After summarizing all of the above, a natural desire arises to avoid such dense attention surrounding a simple Internet user. And this is precisely the opportunity that the Tor browser can provide you with.
So what is tor? TOR browser is free and open source software, whose name is an acronym for The Onion Router, and in Russian: onion router, or onion router. The name of the browser reflects the basic principles on which its encryption system is built, written in the programming languages Python, C and C ++. In general, the system is a network of proxy servers that establish an anonymous connection in the form of a virtual tunnel in which it is impossible to calculate the user's location, since the data is transmitted in encrypted form.
Through the use of an extensive system of servers, or information nodes, this browser allows the user to remain anonymous, invisible to all potential scammers, robbers, spies and other users with reduced social responsibility. With it, you can create your own sites without revealing their location, and you can also contact those sites that are blocked by official censorship.
Mike Perry, one of the developers of Tor, believes that the browser can provide a high level of protection even against spyware such as PRISM.
Tor Browser was primarily created in the US Navy's research lab when US intelligence agencies were working on the Free Heaven project. For some unknown reason, the project was closed, and all the source codes fell into the public network, where they were caught by talented programmers and organized by the Torproject.org community. Here the browser has already been finalized by voluntary developers, although it continues to be improved, developed and updated to this day.
Just a year ago, Tor already had more than 7,000 system nodes installed on all continents of the Earth, excluding Antarctica, and the number of network users exceeded 2 million. According to Tor Metrics statistics, in 2014 Russia joined the top three countries using the Tor browser most actively. Since the browser is an open source system that various programmers have been working on for more than 15 years, you can not worry that it may turn out to be a catch, and instead of protecting information, it will begin to steal it.
It is the open source code of the browser that gives us a guarantee of the safety of its use.
The existing TOR technology allows any user to access any site without leaving any traces behind. That is, on the site where you looked, they will not be able to track the IP address of your computer, which means they will not be able to figure you out. It won't even be available to your ISP. And the browser itself will not store information on your movements on the Internet.
1. Communication nodes are being formed, installed in different countries by apologists for this technology. For data transfer, 3 arbitrary nodes are used, while no one knows which ones. The data transmitted by users is encrypted multiple times, with each level of encryption being the next layer of the onion router packet. Keep in mind that only the path or routing is encrypted, and not the contents of the information packets themselves. Therefore, if you want secret information to reach the addressee in complete safety, additional encryption will be required.
2. At each subsequent node through which the information packet is transmitted, one layer of the cipher containing information about the next intermediate point is decrypted. After reading this information, the used bulb layer is removed.
That is, the browser sends a packet to the first host that contains the encrypted address of the second host. Node 1 knows the key for the cipher and, having received the address of node 2, sends a packet there, which is similar to the fact that the first layer of the husk was removed from the onion. Node #2, having received the packet, holds the key to decrypt the address of node #3—another layer of husk has been removed from the onion. And this is repeated several times. Thus, from the outside it will be impossible to understand which site you ended up opening in your Tor browser window.
Search engines, your ISP, or someone else who is already used to following your surfing the web may guess that you are using Tor. They won't know what you watch or do online, but the very fact that you want to hide something will become known to them. Therefore, you will have to study existing ways to increase anonymity if you choose this path.
The Tor system uses simple computers, not high-speed ones. Another drawback follows from this: the speed of information transfer in this anonymous network may not be enough to view, for example, video or other entertainment content.
Currently, the Tor browser is working and actively developing, using more than 15 languages, including Russian. The latest version of Tor was released on January 23, 2017. In some countries, the Tor Project website is blocked or censored, making it impossible to download the Tor Browser directly. In this case, you can use the mirror: Tor Browser Bundle on Github, if the mirrors are not available, you can try to download it through the Gettor service.
Apparently, the Tor network remains unhacked. At least according to an internal NSA report from 2012, although the organization had the ability to disclose the ownership of certain nodes in certain cases, in general they are not able to disclose any node upon request. Yes, and these disclosures occurred on occasions such as an error in the Firefox browser, which was included in the tor bundle and others like that. If you use Tor correctly, then the probability of disclosure is extremely small.Do not forget to leave your reviews about the browser
Personally, I am a supporter of maintaining privacy and anonymity on the Internet. I propagate and urge everyone to support the Tor project as necessary and useful, especially in light of the sad events with the new anti-Internet laws. Support the Tor network. Set yourself a relay - if you can allocate at least 50 kb / s for Tor in your channel, this will already be enough.
Why I stand for privacy and the possibility of anonymity. After all, I'm a law-abiding citizen and I have nothing to hide, right?
Well, I personally can answer this with the following arguments:
It will be interesting to know your opinion on privacy and anonymity,% username%
As a rule, some Internet users, for various reasons, try to ensure their privacy, therefore, they regularly consider the main methods for anonymizing traffic from the Internet, which are available for use by an ordinary user. In principle, the daily use of a VPN can help solve this problem, but this method will not seem convenient to everyone. Therefore, in this article we will talk about TOR - an anonymous distributed network.
Nowadays, in Runet, with the advent of state control and a tougher position in relation to ordinary users, we are talking about the future fate of TOR and similar anonymizers. they have long been trying to ban the Tor network, reviews of which are extremely positive. Information is already appearing in the media about the “ban on TOR” at the suggestion of the Russian security forces. Thus, the Izvestia newspaper contains a direct indication that today there is a proposal from the security forces to ban programs that hide users on the network.
The Public Council under the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation considers it necessary to legally regulate the activities of legal entities and individuals on the Internet. Therefore, he formed proposals on the need to ban anonymizers - programs that mask data and an IP address.
If users are denied access to a certain site by a court decision, users will still be able to access the site using the anonymizer (for example, using a search on the Tor network). For example, users from China and Belarus visit sites that are blocked by local authorities without any problems.
The proposal of the security forces involves a ban on software or browsers that have built-in anonymizers (the Tor Internet network, for example). In addition, web servers are also referred to as masking tools. These are stand-alone sites through which users can switch from a different IP address to. There is also an indication that such amendments will be made to federal law.
To date, the state's position on this matter has not yet been fully determined.
Why is the Tor network needed for an ordinary and ordinary user?
Logically, every citizen who does not break the law should think: “Why should I hide myself on the Internet using an anonymizer? I'm not planning illegal actions - hacking sites, spreading malware, cracking passwords, etc.? In a general sense, this question can be answered as follows: some sites containing content for free download are blocked very quickly and thus become inaccessible to most users. In addition, some employers restrict access to social networks and entertainment sites, and the Tor network resources make it easy to bypass these restrictions.
At the same time, one can also cite the original opinion of one developer of the free software TOR, which he voiced in an interview.
Why is anonymity required for ordinary Internet users, who, by definition, have nothing to hide?
The thing is that “there is nothing to hide” is not a reason for state structures to completely control all user actions on the Internet. The most ordinary citizens work in these structures, guided in their work by laws written illiterately by other incompetent citizens. If such people do not like something, they will have to spend money, time and health to prove their innocence with an unpredictable result. Why is such a risk needed if there is a simple technical tool that is supported by other, smarter people.
Among other things, along with anonymity, the user receives protection from censorship on the network at the state level. Should an ordinary citizen think what site can be banned today at the initiative of Deputy Ivanov? This is not the business of this deputy, especially if he is never informed which sites the citizen visited today at will.
TOR is a network of virtual tunnels that will allow the user to best protect privacy and
How TOR works: the program connects the user's computer to the network not directly, but through a chain of several randomly selected computers (relays) that also belong to the TOR network.
All data sent to the Internet using TOR becomes anonymous (the source is hidden) and remains encrypted throughout the entire length between the user's computer and the last relay. After the data is sent from the last relay and sent to the final destination site, this data is already in clear, normal form.
When transferring important data, such as the Username or password to enter the site, you need to make sure that the HTTPS protocol is working.
It is worth noting that we owe the emergence of this anonymous network precisely to the American intelligence services. Once upon a time, the implementation of a spy project took place, which later became infamous. It was called "Open Skies" and for some reason was closed in a short period of time. After that, all the data of the closed network, in particular the source codes, were in the public domain. On the basis of the information received, the initiative group whose members were experts in the field of the Internet and completely free of charge began to create their own network, not controlled from the outside. This private network is called The Onion Router, which means "Onion Router" in Russian. That is why the symbol of the network "Thor" has an image of an onion on the logo. This name explains the principle of the anonymizer - a chain of nodes and connections leading to complete privacy can be associated with the layers of the onion. The network works in such a way that the endpoints of the connection cannot be established.
Various programs from the TOR package are available for download from the official website of the project. Speaking about the Tor network, how to use it, it should be noted that there is a TOR browser software package. It does not require installation and contains a browser. Most often it is Mozilla Firefox. The browser is preconfigured for safe access to the Internet using TOR. You just need to download the package, unpack the archive and run the TOR program.
After downloading the TOR Browser Bundle software assembly, you need to save the package to the "Desktop" or USB. Usually, this option is convenient for compact solutions when you need to download TOR from a USB flash drive.
Speaking about how to get into the Tor network, it should be noted that the user must have a directory that contains several files. One of them is the file start TOR Browser or "Launching the TOR Browser". It depends on which operating system is being used.
After launching the TOR Browser Bundle, the user will first see Vidalia launch and connect to the TOR network. After that, the browser will start, which will confirm the use of TOR at the moment. The TOR network is ready to use.
An important point: it is necessary that the browser that was in the package with TOR be used, and not the user's own browser.
The TOR browser (Mozilla and the Torbutton plugin) has already been configured to completely disable JavaScript, settings for https and other settings for a secure Internet connection.
For an ordinary user, this software package is the best option for working with TOR.
There is also a stationary option for installing TOR. This is a connection to the Tor network using the Vidalia Polipo TOR assembly.
You need to download the program from the TOR project website and install it on your computer.
Safe work on the Internet is carried out only with the Mozilla browser with the Torbutton plugin. If this plugin is incompatible with the version of the Mozilla browser, then you need to use the universal FOxyProxy Basic.
Today, TOR developers can offer -bundle packages (Vidalia Bridge Bundle or Vidalia Relay Bundle) for download. They are already immediately with the settings "bridges" or "relays".
The need for such additional settings may arise for users whose providers block the TOR network. These are the BRIDGE settings that can help if Tor does not connect to the network by default.
If the user himself wants to become a member of the TOR project, then you should familiarize yourself with the RELAY settings (relay).
If the provider or system administrator blocks access to the TOR site, then the program itself can be requested by e-mail. In this case, the request is made from the gMail mailbox, you do not need to use e-mail located on Russian free domains.
To receive the English package of the TOR browser for Windows OS, you need to send an email to [email protected]. In the message itself, you only need to write the word windows. The subject field can be empty.
A similar method can be used to request the TOR browser for MAC OS. To do this, write "macos-i386". If you have Linux, then you need to write "linux-i386" in the case of a 32-bit system or "linux-x86 64" for a 64-bit system. If you need a translated version of the TOR program, then you need to write "help". instructions and a list of available languages will come.
If TOR is already installed, but does not work, then this could happen for the following reasons.
In normal connection, if it does not connect to the Tor network, you can try the following: open the "VIdala Control Panel", click on the "Message Log" and select the "Advanced Settings" tab. Problems with connecting TOR can be for the following reasons:
1. Disabled system clock. You need to make sure that the date and time are set correctly on the computer and restart TOR. You may need to synchronize the system clock with the server.
2. The user is behind a firewall. In order for TOR to use 443, you need to open the "VIdala Control Panel", click "Settings and networks" and check the box next to the inscription "My firewall only allows me to connect to certain ports." This will help set up the Tor network and let it work fully.
3. TOR blocking by the anti-virus database. You need to make sure that the antivirus program does not prevent TOR from connecting to the network.
4. If the computer still does not connect to the Tor network, then it is very possible that the anonymizer is being blocked by the ISP. This can often be bypassed with TOR bridges, which are hidden relays and are difficult to block.
If you need the exact reason for the inability to connect TOR, then you should send an email to the developers [email protected] and attach information from the log log.
To use a bridge, you must first discover it. It's possible at bridges.torproject.org. You can also send an email to [email protected]. After sending the letter, you should make sure that the letter itself says “Get bridges”. Without this, a response letter will not come. It is also important that the sending must be from gmail.com or yahoo.com.
After setting up several bridges, the Tor network will become more stable if some bridges become unavailable. There is no certainty that the bridge used today will also work tomorrow. For this reason, a constant update of the list of bridges is required.
If it is possible to use several bridges, then you should open the "VIdala Control Panel", click "Settings", and then "Networks" and check the box next to the inscription "My provider blocks connection to the TOR network". Next, enter a list of bridges in the field. Then click "OK" and restart TOR.
If using a bridge fails, you should try configuring TOR while using an HTTPS or SOCKS proxy to access the TOR network. This means that even if TOR is blocked on the user's local network, then it is possible to safely use an open proxy server to connect.
For further work, there should be a TOR / Vidalia configuration and a list of https, socks4, or socks5 proxies.
You need to open the "VIdala Control Panel" and click "Settings".
Next, click on the "Networks" tab, select "I use a proxy to access the Internet."
In the "Address" field, enter the address of the Open Proxy. This is the IP address or name of the proxy, then enter the port of the proxy.
Usually no username and password are required. If this is still needed, then they should be entered in the appropriate fields. Select "Type for proxy" as http/https or socks4, or socks 5. Click "OK". Vidalia and TOR are now configured to use a proxy to access the rest of the network.
On the TOR website today it is possible to find many other different products for other operating systems (Mac OS, Linux, Windows). Thus, the search engine in the Tor network can be used regardless of what device you use to visit the Internet. Differences can only be in individual settings regarding the features of the custom OS.
There is an already implemented solution for using TOR for mobile phones, for example for Android. This option has already been tested and, as it turned out, it is quite efficient, which cannot but rejoice. Especially considering that most of the users have moved from computers to convenient lightweight tablets.
As mentioned above, it is possible to set up TOR on an Android device. To do this, a package called Orbot is installed. A description of how to download it is on the TOR website.
There are also still experimental packages for Nokia and Apple iOS. However, after a series of tests and improvements, the output of an excellent tool that allows you to achieve uniqueness in the network is guaranteed.
In addition, the TOR developers have launched several more anonymizers, such as Tails. It is a Linux-based OS that provides anonymous and secure web surfing. There are a number of other products on the Tor website that will be of interest to the user.
TOR also makes it possible to use hidden services for users. You can, without revealing your IP address, provide
It is clear that such a service is not in great demand among users, although this information is located on the TOR website simultaneously with instructions on how to search the Tor network.
This was the basic information regarding this most famous and well-functioning anonymizer. Today, it is hoped that users will be able to run the TOR network on their computer and continue to use the secure and anonymous Internet at their discretion.
To get more anonymity on the Internet and not set up a VPN over and over again, you can download a browser called Tor. This browser is a modification of Mozilla Firefox, has many built-in functions for creating a proxy server, increasing anonymity, and various configuration tips. At the first start, Tor will ask you to set up your connection for further access to the network. Your habitual Internet experience will hardly change, however, the connection will be somewhat slow, the location request is disabled, which means that all search parameters are reset: you will not see your most visited sites or the selection of feeds for advertising, this can also slow down your Internet surfing. Of course, in exchange for small inconveniences, you get full anonymity and access to any information or site.
Download the browser from the official site if you haven't already. Follow the link http://tor-browser.ru and choose your download method. On the same page it is possible to make a donation to the project. Once the browser is saved, you will see the “Tor Browser” folder and find the “Start Tor Browser” file either in it or on your desktop.
It's better to know right away what kind of site you need.
By clicking on it, IP addresses and countries will appear on the right. On the left is the settings panel.
You may need security settings and Tor settings. The browser settings lead to the same window that you saw at the beginning: there you can configure proxies and specify open ports.
Now you can not set up a VPN for yourself, but simply use the Tor browser when you really need it. It is not suitable for everyday use, as it takes longer to load pages and does not select the search according to your preferences, but in some situations it remains indispensable.
The FBI pulled off a successful operation with ease and apprehended Harvard University student Eldo Kim, who sent a message about a bomb at the university building. Note that Tor did not help the "miner" and now the joker faces up to 5 years in prison and a fine of 250 thousand dollars.
The 20-year-old student admitted that he wrote the letter in the hope of avoiding the final exam, to be sure, he duplicated the threatening letter to the university security department and the university newspaper. Although he succeeded here: due to the evacuation, all morning exams were postponed, but now the guy has more serious problems.
Kim took steps to avoid identification. He set up an anonymous email address and used the Tor anonymization service. However, it still managed to be calculated. Judging by the testimony of the FBI agents in the documents filed for the court, the special service received a list of users of the local computer network in the university dormitory. They studied the traffic and determined which of the students use the Tor service. As you know, Tor traffic can be identified by characteristic features. The FBI then interrogated all users of the anonymous network one by one. There were not too many of them, so it turned out to be quite simple to calculate the criminal.
One could argue that the student was unlucky to send the message from the student's computer. If he did this from a public Wi-Fi, passing the traffic through some other machine, then the FBI method would not work.
However, history demonstrates the weakness of relatively rare information security tools, writes renowned cryptographer Bruce Schneier. "The same thing that allows you to hide your involvement makes you the prime suspect." The FBI didn't have to hack Tor, they just used standard police methods to identify the sender of the letter. In other words, even in the most powerful cryptographic protection there is a weak point - this is the person himself. If you can't break the code, you can always break the person.
Similar methods for identifying Tor users are suitable for use at the level of any provider. Don't be surprised if intelligence agencies already have a list of Tor users in every city.
As easy as pie. First, the secret services have black keys in use in operating systems. This means that the user can sit at Tor and consider himself completely safe, and at this time his real IP address is merged over a parallel line. Secondly, Thor guarantees security only if the rules are strictly observed. Are you sure you know these rules 100%? For example, JavaScript cannot be enabled. But some sites don't work without it. Enabled - and your IP is already known to everyone.
Very often, a site requires JavaScript to be enabled and refuses to continue working until the user fulfills this requirement. Well, know that if you have enabled JavaScript execution in the Torah, then your IP is no longer a secret for an outside site.
Can. This is harder to do than figuring out a TOR user. But the fact is that setting up a VPN is a very complicated process and mistakes often happen here. There has been a recent study on this topic. It turned out that approximately 40% of existing VPN services make it quite easy to calculate the IP of users - due to gross errors in the configuration.
To hide your IP address when visiting websites. The second task of the Tor browser is to provide access to those sites that have been blocked in Russia.
