How to properly configure Tor and hide your IP? Tor will not save you from being detected by intelligence agencies. Tor is easy to use
If you think that in order to surf the web anonymously you just need to download Tor and run it, you are very mistaken. Today I will show you how to properly configure Tor to ensure maximum anonymity. Also within the framework of this article I will give practical recommendations about how to use Thor correctly. How to behave correctly on the deep web, what you can do and what you can’t do.
You may be interested in the article “”, in which we talked about which, in addition to the well-known network Web yet there are networks and the article “”, in which we reviewed the best search engines on the deep web.
Let me remind you that using the search form on the site you can find a lot of information on the topic of anonymity on the Internet and about Tor in particular.
- Where and how to download Tor correctly
- How to install Tor
- How to set up Tor
- Setting up the NoScript extension
- Settings hidden parameters browser
- How to use Tor
We are for freedom of speech, but against criminals and terrorists. I really hope that this article will be useful exclusively to the first category of people. In any case, we are not responsible for any illegal use of the Tor program by you.
How to download Tor
It seems that it can be difficult to download and that’s it, but not everything is so simple. You need to download only from the official website of the developers. Not the old versions from software portals and torrent trackers, but only the latest version from the officials.
Why is it advisable to always install the latest version and update the installed version promptly? Because old version may have zero-day vulnerabilities that can be used by specialists to figure out your real IP address and even infect your system with malware.
Download Tor Russian version you can follow the direct link. Downloaded by default English version. If you need the Russian version of Tor, then select “Russian” in the drop-down menu under the “Download Tor” button. There you can download the version of Tor for: Apple OS X, Linux and smartphones.
How to install Tor
After downloading the program, let's begin installing it. Double click mouse and launch the downloaded file. The following window will appear:
Select the location where you want to install Tor. If there is nothing to change, by default Tor will install itself in the folder in which it is located. installation file.
Installing Tor Click “Finish”.
Click on the “Connect” button
Let's wait for the browser to load.
How to set up Tor
Now let's start setting up Tor. First of all, let's configure the NoScript extension correctly.
After reading your comments to the article, I realized that you did not understand me quite correctly. My friends, these hardcore settings are more applicable for the darknet, to ensure maximum anonymity and resist de-anonymization by law enforcement agencies and hackers. If you want to use Tor or just change the IP address, then you don’t need these settings! You can use Thor straight out of the box.
Setting up the NoScript extension
Tor developers have equipped their software with very important and useful plugin NoScript, which is installed by default, but unfortunately not configured by default.
To configure NoScript, click on the add-on icon on the left side of the browser. In the menu that appears, select “Settings”.
On the “White List” tab, uncheck the “Global script permission...” box.
Go to the “Built-in objects” tab and check the required fields. Everything is exactly as shown in the screenshot below.
Configuring hidden browser options
Now let’s configure the Browser itself; to do this, you need to go to the hidden settings. Read more about hidden settings We wrote about the privacy of the Firefox browser in the article “” and in the article “”.
So, in the address bar we write “about:config” and press enter. After this, a warning window will appear, in which we click on the blue “I promise that...” button and move on.
Browser Settings Here we need to find and change some critical settings. First of all, we change the loading and Javascript processing. This can be done by changing the “javascript.enable” parameter.
IN search bar, which is located under the address bar, write “javascript.enable” and press enter. Now right click click on the “Switch” item, which will change this parameter from "True" to "False".
Disabling Javascript In the same way, we find the “network.http.sendRefererHeader” parameter and change it from the value “2” to the value “0”.
Disabling HTTP Referer Find the “network.http.sendSecureXsiteReferrer” parameter and change its value to “False”.
Disabling SecureXsiteReferrer Find the parameter “extensions.torbutton.saved.sendSecureXSiteReferrer” and change its value to “False”.
Disabling SecureXSiteReferrer Find the parameter “network.cookie.cookieBehavior” and change its value from “1” to “2”.
After these changes, some sites may not work correctly in this browser. But you can always return previous settings, which I certainly don’t recommend doing.
How to use Tor
After you have made all the settings, I want to tell you how to use Tor correctly. Here is a list of rules that everyone who uses Tor must follow:
- Do not install unnecessary and unverified extensions in the Browser.
- There is no excuse not to disable the NoScript add-on.
- Frequently update the node chain and reload the browser.
- Do not open the Tor browser (Mozzila Firefox) in full screen.
- Do not use the Tor browser with admin rights.
- Never log in using your username and password to your main mail or to your real social network accounts that contain some information about you or are somehow connected to your real accounts. The only exception is the authorization form for Onion sites and forums. And of course, for such sites it is advisable to use a separate Mailbox, which is also not associated with your real mail.
- Check all files downloaded from DeepWeb for viruses. We wrote about how to properly check downloaded files for viruses in the article “”. Run these files only on virtual system. We wrote about choosing a virtual machine in the article “” and how to install and configure virtual machine to scan files for viruses in the article "".
- Update the Tor Browser promptly.
I also recommend using an anonymous operating system or another anonymous OS. Use the search, on the site we once reviewed the best anonymous operating systems.
The anonymity of Tor depends only on you and your behavior on the network, not even the most anonymous Browser will not protect your system and your information from the user’s crooked hands. Be careful, don't be fooled. If in doubt, it is better not to click, not to follow the link, and of course not to download.
The Deep Web is not always a friendly environment. There you can also get hurt by people in suits if you do something not very illegal. And from hackers or just scammed if you are a fluffy, naive dandelion user.
That's all, friends. I hope you were able to configure Tor correctly. Good luck to everyone and don't forget to follow us on in social networks. This is not the last article on the topic Tor anonymity and information security.
How can I check that the Tor client is configured and working correctly?
Cm. 15. How to check if Tor is working?
Can the first server identify me?
It only knows the IP address, but does not know the text of the message. The first of the three servers can see encrypted Tor traffic coming from your computer. However, it does not know who you are or what you are doing through the Tor network. He only sees that your IP address is using Tor. Tor is not illegal anywhere in the world, so just using Tor- no problem.
Can a third server see my traffic?
Theoretically this is possible. The third of the three servers can see the text of the traffic, because at the last node it is decrypted. But he will not know who sent this traffic. If you use encryption, for example, when using services for working with bank account via the Internet (always encrypted connection), when visiting a website e-commerce(always encrypted connection), etc., then the node will only know the direction of the information exchange.
What programs can be used with Tor?
In principle, you can connect to Tor any network applications working in transport TCP protocol. (See 10. Torification of applications). However, there are two important points in the “Torification” of programs: connection-level anonymity and application-level anonymity. Connection-level anonymity is achieved by sending data through the Tor network. To ensure application-level anonymity, you need to ensure that the information sent by the application does not contain confidential information. This second part should be done on the basis specific program, so it’s hardly possible to immediately recommend a large number of programs for safe use with Tor. Usually this is the browser.
Much of the work has been focused on Firefox browser. The software package provided on the site automatically installs the Torbutton add-on for Firefox if you have Firefox installed. Since version 1.2.0, the Torbutton application takes care of both connection-level and application-level issues.
Why is Tor slow?
Tor will never "fly". Your traffic passes through a network of volunteer computers in different parts light, so" narrow places" and network latency will always exist. You shouldn't expect a high-speed broadband connection over Tor. However, this doesn't mean the network can't be improved.
When working through the Tor network, I am constantly disconnected from the web service with the requirement to re-enter my login and password. Why?
When you work through Tor, your IP as seen by the servers changes regularly. Some web services, for example, mail services, consider such a change in the user's IP address during one session as a hacking attempt (the so-called. session hijacking), disconnect the user and ask him to provide his access details again to prove his legitimacy.
To avoid this you need to open configuration file torrc and write the command at the top TrackHostExits and separated by a space - the addresses of those sites where such problems arise (this can be any hosts, when connecting to which you do not want Tor to switch chains and change your IP). If you enter multiple addresses, separate them with commas. For example, if you enter:
TrackHostExits mail.rambler.ru
then you will have a permanent IP only on the Rambler mail service; if you specify:
TrackHostExits .rambler.ru
then the IP will not change on any pages of the rambler.ru website and on all its services.
Please note that use the command TrackHostExits and a permanent IP (during the session) should only be used if operation becomes impossible otherwise. As long as your IP (that is, the Tor exit node in the chain through which traffic is transmitted) remains static, the enemy has a better chance of tracking your true location using statistical indicators of the Tor network.
Are 3 links in the Tor chain enough for anonymity?
The dimension of three links is hard-coded in the program code and is not changed through configuration files. There are two reasons for this: security and performance.
Three is the optimal value because interactive nature TCP, the layer at which Tor operates, makes intersection attacks the most dangerous. These attacks are effective when capturing traffic from the start node (or before it) and from the end node (or after it), and the number intermediate nodes does not have a significant impact on the effectiveness of the attack. However, you cannot set the chain length to less than 3 without compromising anonymity.
Is it possible to extend the Tor chain using additional proxies?
If you use Tor in conjunction with Privoxy or Polipo, you can add one HTTP proxy after the chain of Tor nodes. To do this, open the Privoxy configuration file (Main Configuration), find in it a line like
forward-socks4a/127.0.0.1:9050 .
and replace the dot at the end with the address of the desired proxy server.
Theoretically, programs like FreeCap allow you to build arbitrary chains of Socks proxy servers, which can also include Tor chains. In practice, however, this is not always possible (especially in Windows environment).
How to force traffic to leave the Tor network in specific country?
Open a Tor statistics site (for example, https://torstat.xenobite.eu/). In the sort field, select sorting by country (for example, de). As a result, you will get a number of German exit nodes (check the field Exit – YES). Sites highlighted in pink are fast.
Open the Tor configuration file and add:
ExitNodes nickname1,nickname2,...
StrictExitNodes 1
Instead of nickname1,nickname2, of course, substitute real node names.
Restart Tor
Keep in mind that this practice will not increase your anonymity, regardless of the legal regime of a particular country. Don't forget before returning to normal operation Tor return settings to the initial state(comment out the lines) and restart the program again. Or run Tor with a separate config.
Why does Google block search queries via Tor?
From time to time, some irresponsible individuals use Tor to search Google for vulnerable websites. Google maintains a database of such suspicious search queries, and if their number from a specific IP exceeds, it blocks this address, subsequently issuing a warning that " your computer may be infected with malware that searches for".
Since the number of exit nodes in the Tor network is limited, when there is a surge of such activity, almost all of them end up on Google’s list of blocked ones. This blocking is temporary and will be automatically removed after a few hours. Sometimes switching the exit node helps, because... Not all of them are blocked.
Is it possible to use a chain of one node in the Tor network to increase speed (like a regular proxy server)
Such an opportunity in recent versions of Tor appeared, although the developers objected to its implementation for a long time. You can add a parameter to the configuration file
ExcludeSingleHopRelays 0.
But it should be taken into account that in this case the user’s anonymity decreases not only due to the fact that he uses network nodes as a regular one-hop proxy. For single-hop proxy connections, only those exit nodes will be used in which the AllowSingleHopExits 1 option is enabled. The number of such nodes is extremely small, since for the operators of such nodes the likelihood of confiscation of servers for the purpose of investigative measures increases, and the traffic of such nodes is more likely to be listened to as it makes it easy to track users. Using this option is highly discouraged.
Can launch own server Will Tor improve user anonymity if he also uses it as a client?
If the user's provider (ISP) keeps connection logs, then when running server Tor, the volume of such logs will become very large and against the background large number passing connections, it will be more difficult to track the user’s activity, including the time of access to the network, the amount of information transmitted and received. (Unless the ISP uses a statistical analysis system specifically designed to track Tor chains. Then the user's anonymity will not be better, but also at least no worse than a simple tor client.
The developers claim that local user Tor servers better protected against a number of attacks in which an observer cannot monitor user traffic statistics at the ISP level. On this moment this issue has not been sufficiently studied.
What's happened root directories Tor network?
Directory Authority servers (DA) - root directories, servers for collecting and authenticating network statistics. Formally, they are independent, but their number is very small; fingerprints of their keys are placed in the source code of the Tor program.
DAs check the nodes of the Tor network, create a statistics file and vote among themselves to compare the results, forming a consensus file signed with their keys, which will be trusted by participants in the Tor network.
What are Tor sentry nodes?
The Tor client program selects a list of stable and high-speed nodes in random order(but once upon initial startup) and tries to create connections through one or small number incoming nodes in the order of this list, and the list itself is changed as rarely as possible (as nodes leave the network, checking your list with statistics).
These incoming nodes are called guard nodes. Thus, entry into the Tor network is carried out through rarely changing sentinel nodes.
Output Node Rules Tor installed By default, they prohibit sending traffic through port 25 (SMTP). Therefore, sending spam emails via Tor will not work. Thus, the Tor network is not suitable for spam, because almost everything Tor relays configured to prohibit sending outgoing mail. It is much easier to use a regular proxy server to send spam. In addition, spammers did an excellent job at their “job” even before the advent of the Tor service.
What are the risks of using a non-genuine version? software Tor?
The Tor software comes with a built-in list of locations and public keys for each directory control. Thus, the only way to force users to use the fake Tor network is to provide them with modified versions software. Therefore, it is recommended to download software packages only from the official Tor website.
How can users know if they are using the correct version of software?
The source code or software package downloaded from the developers’ website must be equipped with digital signatures With GNU Privacy Guard.
TOR browser is perhaps the simplest and most affordable way for an anonymous connection to the Internet. Now we will talk about how to set up the TOR browser on your computer, as well as where to download it and how to install it.
Step No. 1. Download the TOR browser.
TOR browser is free browser, built on top of Firefox. You can download it from the official website of the developer. To do this, you need to go to the website, select a language and click on the “Download” button. After which the installation files will begin downloading.
By default, the site will offer to download the version of the TOP browser that is suitable for your operating system. If you want to download a version for another OS, you can do so.
Step No. 2. Installing the TOR browser.
At the TOP installation stage, the browser does not require any additional settings. Everything happens automatically, you just need to follow the instructions that will appear on the screen. So first you need to select your browser language.
And then the folder in which the TOR browser will be installed.
Then all you have to do is wait until the installation is completed.
Step No. 3. Launch and configure the Tor browser.
After launching the TOR browser, a window called “ Network settings TOR".
There are two buttons available here: Connect and Configure. If you click on the “Connect” button, the TOP browser will start working with standard settings. This option Suitable for most occasions.
The “Configure” button will start manual configuration of the TOP browser. This option may be useful if you connect to the Internet through a proxy server or if your Internet provider blocks the TOR network. First of all, the TOR browser will first ask whether your Internet provider is blocking the TOR network. If there are no problems connecting to the TOR network or you don’t know for sure, then select the “NO” option.
If you select “Yes”, the TOR browser will offer to configure bridges. A bridge is a point in the TOR network whose address is not published in the TOR documentation. You can download the list of bridges on the website.
After setting up TOP bridges, the browser will prompt you to configure an Internet connection through a proxy server. If you connect to the Internet directly (without using a proxy server), then you need to select the “NO” option here.
If a proxy server is used to connect to the Internet, then you need to select the “YES” option and configure the connections. TOR browser will ask you to select the type of proxy server, its IP address, as well as other proxy-related settings.
After setting up the proxy server, you just need to click on the connect button and the TOR browser will connect to the Internet through the TOR network.
Step No. 4. Checking the TOR browser settings.
If you have configured the TOP browser correctly, the following message should appear on the screen: “Congratulations! This browser configured to use TOR."
If the inscription appeared on the screen: “Alas. You are not currently using TOR”, this means that there is something wrong with the TOR browser settings and it was not possible to connect to the TOR network. In this case, you can click on the onion button and select “TOR Network Settings” or simply press the S key on your keyboard.
After which you can re-configure the TOR browser.
Step No. 5. Change the IP address in the TOP browser.
Immediately after connecting to the Internet through the TOR network, you receive a new IP address. But, if necessary, this address can be changed. To do this, you need to click on the button in the form of an onion and select the menu item “New TOR chain for this site.”
After which the page will be updated and you will receive a new IP address. You can check how this works on any website to check the IP address, for example, you can use the website.
Apparently, the Tor network remains unhacked. At least according to a 2012 internal NSA report, although the organization had capabilities in certain cases disclose the ownership of certain nodes; in general, they are not able to disclose any node upon request. Yes, and these disclosures occurred due to situations such as an error in the Firefox browser, which was part of the tor bundle and other similar things. If you use Tor correctly, the likelihood of exposure is extremely low.2. Tor is not only used by criminals
Contrary to popular belief, Tor is not only used by criminals, pedophiles and other bad terrorists. This, to put it mildly, is far from true. Activists of various kinds, journalists, and simply people who love privacy make up the portrait of Tor users. Personally, I am very impressed by the position of the Tor developers, answering the question “what, do you have something to hide?” with the phrase: “No, it’s not a secret - it’s just none of your business.”And criminals have a large arsenal of tools, from changing identities to stolen devices or network access, from botnets to Trojan viruses. By using and promoting Tor, you are helping criminals no more than using the Internet.
3. Tor has no hidden loopholes or backdoors
There are rumors that Tor was created by the military, and they deliberately created hidden loopholes in it. Although Tor was originally funded by the US Navy, its code has since been in open access, and many cryptography experts studied its source code. Everyone can study them. And now enthusiasts, advocates of privacy and anonymity on the Internet, are working on the project.There is also information that US intelligence agencies hold about 60% of all nodes - but this is most likely a distorted information that about 60% of funding is provided by the US in the form of grants.
4. There were no cases of conviction of anyone for supporting a relay node
True, in Europe, in this beacon of human rights and legal paradise, or more precisely in Austria, just the other day the person who held the output node was accused of complicity, because Illegal traffic passed through this node. So the danger of maintaining an output node is obvious. Well, relay nodes should be out of danger, since according to the network operation scheme they do not know where the request came from, where it is directed, or what traffic they transmit. And it is almost impossible to prove the passage of traffic through relay.5. Tor is easy to use.
Many people think that Tor is something difficult for hackers and computer geniuses. In fact, the developers have already made it as easy as possible to use - just download Tor Browser, and when you launch it, you will automatically use the Tor network. No settings, commands in command line and other things.6. Tor is not as slow as you think
Just a couple of years ago the network was slow. Now access to sites occurs at quite acceptable speed. Yes, you can’t download torrents through Tor - it’s both slow and harmful to the network. But you can carry out any other usual activity without irritation.7. Tor is not a panacea
When using Tor, you still need to follow a few rules and understand a little about how it works, what it can do and what it cannot do, so as not to nullify all its efforts. If you are using Tor Browser and at the same time log in to Facebook, there is little point in this. Understand how it works and use it wisely.Personally, I am a supporter of maintaining privacy and anonymity on the Internet. I promote and encourage everyone to support the Tor project as necessary and useful, especially in light of the sad events with the new laws “against the Internet.” Support the Tor network. Set up a relay for yourself - if you can allocate at least 50 kb/s in your channel for Tor, this will already be enough.
Why I advocate 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:
- I may have nothing to hide, but what I do is none of your business
- times change, people change, and laws change. I wrote something in the comments, and a couple of years after the adoption of another smart law, it suddenly became classed as extremist statements
- I don’t believe that all the people who are trying to monitor my actions are crystal honest and devoted servants of Themis. That no one will try to use the information received for their own dirty selfish purposes.
It will be interesting to know your opinion on issues of privacy and anonymity, %username%
The article is provided solely for the purpose of familiarizing yourself with the technology of the Tor browser.
IN last years You can hear about restrictions on the Internet more and more often. Governments different countries prohibit their citizens from accessing resources containing content that, in the opinion of deputies, is incorrect. Operators are forced to transmit information about users, and there is no talk of any anonymity on the Internet. At the same time, it is not always the case that sites blocked by decision of certain authorities actually contain materials that can harm users.
“The forbidden fruit is sweet,” and various restrictions on the Internet have given rise not only to ways to circumvent them, but also to a whole secret network, which can only be accessed by using special means, hiding information about the user. The anonymous network is called Tor, and it is available absolutely free to everyone.
What is Tor
The abbreviation Tor stands for The Onion Router. This name may seem ridiculous to people who are not familiar with the concept of onion routing. It refers to the technology of anonymous exchange of information using standard computer network. The operating principle of the system is based on permanent encryption data while transferring it from the server to the client. Data passes through many network nodes, thereby erasing traces that could lead to the sender and recipient of the information.
Thanks to Tor, users do not have to worry about their anonymity on the Internet. They get the opportunity to view any information they are interested in, secretly leave messages on sites, send each other encrypted personal messages, and do much more secretly from everyone. Using Tor, you can easily bypass all ISP restrictions imposed on sites.
As you can understand, sites in hidden network Tor is not moderated or checked by anyone. You cannot send a content complaint to them, and if you do, such actions will lead to nothing. Accordingly, in Tor you can find, among other things, information prohibited in all countries. Shocking, illegal, devoid of humanity and meaning, materials and services are contained on the Tor network. It is because of this that it received the name “ dark internet" Sites created exclusively for access via Tor are located in the .onion domain zone. They are not indexed by regular search engines, and can only be accessed through the anonymous Tor network.
You can view information on the Tor network through any computer, but this requires a browser of the same name, which is distributed free of charge.
How to use the Tor browser
Starting to use Tor is quite simple; to do this, you need to download Tor Browser from a regular browser and install it. Tor is installed as follows:
Once the Tor Browser is installed on your computer, it must be properly configured to work in anonymous network. Launch Tor via the Start Tor Browser.exe shortcut from the folder where it was installed. Next, you need to set the primary parameters. This can be done automatically by clicking “Connect” in the window that opens, but this method does not always work.
If you are unable to automatically connect to the Tor network, you can select “Configure” and set the necessary parameters yourself. Process manual settings The Torah is also quite simple, you will need to answer 2 questions:
When the answers have been selected, the Tor browser will try again to produce automatic setup according to the data received. This may take a couple of minutes, after which Tor will start.
Please note: The Tor browser is based on Firefox.
To finally make sure that the computer is now on an anonymous network, you need to click on the “Check Tor Internet settings” button.
If a page opens that says that the browser uses Tor, then everything is configured correctly and the program can be used for anonymous access to resources.
Important: IN Tor browser you can look at the chain through which user anonymity is achieved. On any page, click on the green onion icon to the left of address bar. A pop-up menu will open, where you can see through which chain the request passes from the computer to the final server.
To achieve maximum privacy, Tor provides 4 levels of security. By default, the browser sets it to minimum, but you can change this setting if you wish. To do this, click on the green onion to the left of the browser bar and select “Privacy and Security Settings.”
A new window will open where you can use the slider to adjust the security level from low to high. Next to each of the options it is written how they differ and what functions they turn off. The more high level security, the worse various plugins and services will work in the browser, and the content on sites will be displayed.
For basic use of the Tor browser, it is enough low level security.
What are the disadvantages of the Tor browser?
Complete anonymity on the Internet is quite a significant advantage for many to completely switch to the Tor browser. Despite this, the number of people who use it on permanent basis, few.