tor-network-operation.html
1 <!DOCTYPE html> 2 <html lang="de"> 3 <head> 4 <meta charset="UTF-8" /> 5 <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" /> 6 <meta http-equiv="onion-location" content="http://bopbopl6lohkl2rts3ltesjnag4hzs4jrx2h6k6etgq5xasbpqekzlqd.onion" /> 7 <title>BOP Wiki: TOR Network Operation</title> 8 <link rel="stylesheet" href="/assets/stylesheet.css" /> 9 <link rel="icon" type="image/x-icon" href="/assets/img/favicon.png"> 10 </head> 11 <body> 12 <header> 13 <!-- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --> 14 <script src="/assets/js/navbar-OpenClose.js"></script> 15 <script src="/assets/js/lightbox.js"></script> 16 <script src="/assets/js/copyCodeButton.js"></script> 17 <link rel="stylesheet" href="/resources/js-libraries/highlightJS/atom-one-dark.min.css"> 18 <script src="/resources/js-libraries/highlightJS/highlight.min.js"></script> 19 <script src="/resources/js-libraries/highlightJS/highlightjs-line-numbers.min.js"></script> 20 <script>hljs.highlightAll();</script> 21 <script>hljs.initLineNumbersOnLoad();</script> 22 <!-- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --> 23 <div class="branding"> 24 <button class="toggle-btn-navbar" id="navbarOpenButton">☰</button> 25 <a href="/"> 26 <img class="logo" src="/assets/img/logo.png"> 27 </a> 28 <div class="typing-animation">BytesOfProgress</div> 29 </div> 30 </header> 31 <div id="navbarContainer" class="navbar-container"> 32 <iframe class="navbar-iframe" src="/assets/navbar/navbar.html" frameBorder= "0"></iframe> 33 </div> 34 <main> 35 <!-- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --> 36 37 <article class="site-post"> 38 <header class="post-header"> 39 <h1 class="post-title">TOR Network Operation</h1> 40 <div class="post-meta"> 41 </div> 42 </header> 43 </article> 44 45 <nav class="breadcrumb"> 46 <a href="/">Home</a> 47 <span class="divider">›</span> 48 <a href="/wiki/">Wiki</a> 49 <span class="divider">›</span> 50 <a href="/wiki/TOR/TOR.html">TOR: The Onion Router</a> 51 <span class="divider">›</span> 52 <span class="current">TOR Network Operation</span> 53 </nav> 54 55 <section class="post-content"> 56 57 <!-- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --> 58 59 <p> 60 The Tor network operates decentralized and aims to provide users with 61 anonymity and privacy while browsing the internet. In addition to 62 providing anonymity for regular internet browsing, the Tor 63 network also supports hidden services, which are websites a 64 nd services that are only accessible through the Tor network. 65 These hidden services use .onion domain names and are hosted 66 on servers within the Tor network, providing an extra layer 67 of anonymity for both the service provider and the users 68 accessing the service. 69 </p> 70 71 <p> 72 Here's how it works: 73 </p> 74 75 <span style="color:#ff6600"> 76 <h1 style="font-size:25px">TOR relays / nodes</h1> 77 </span> 78 79 <p> 80 When a user connects to the Tor network, their internet traffic is routed 81 through a series of relays, also known as nodes. These relays 82 are operated by volunteers around the world. 83 </p> 84 85 <p> 86 Each relay in the Tor network only knows the IP address of the previous 87 relay and the next relay in the chain. This creates layers of encryption, 88 similar to layers of an onion, hence the name "onion routing." As data 89 passes through each relay, a layer of encryption is removed, revealing 90 the routing information for the next hop. 91 This process continues until the data reaches its destination. 92 </p> 93 94 <p> 95 The final relay in the chain, known as the exit node, decrypts the final 96 layer of encryption and sends the data to its destination on the 97 regular internet. This exit node is the only point in the chain 98 that can see the user's unencrypted data, but it does not know 99 the original source of the data due to the layered encryption. 100 </p> 101 102 <p> 103 This is the traffic's route when a TOR user accesses 104 a website with a .com, .org, etc. TLD: 105 </p> 106 107 <img src="relay-non-onion-TLD.png" style="height: ; max-height: 90%; max-width: 95%; width: 1200px"> 108 109 <p> 110 When a TOR user accesses a .onion site, there are 2 more middle nodes. 111 The rendezvous-point is where the nodes of the client and of the server 112 find together to communicate: 113 </p> 114 115 <img src="relay-onion-TLD.png" style="height: ; max-height: 90%; max-width: 95%; width: 1200px"> 116 117 <br> 118 119 <p> 120 Because each relay only knows about the relay before and after it in 121 the chain, it is difficult for anyone, including the exit node, to 122 trace the user's activity back to their original IP address. This 123 provides users with a high level of anonymity and privacy. 124 </p> 125 126 <p> 127 The Tor network routes traffic in a way that is unpredictable 128 and constantly changing, making it difficult for adversaries 129 to monitor or track users' activities. 130 </p> 131 132 <br> 133 134 <span style="color:#ff6600"> 135 <h1 style="font-size:25px">TOR bridges</h1> 136 </span> 137 138 <p> 139 Bridges in the Tor network are used to help users bypass censorship or 140 restrictions imposed by network authorities. They act as entry points 141 to the Tor network, similar to entry nodes, but they are not publicly 142 listed in the main Tor directory. When using bridges, the number of 143 middle nodes involved in a connection remains the same. The bridge 144 serves as the entry point to the Tor network, and the connection 145 continues to route through one or more middle nodes before 146 reaching the exit node. 147 </p> 148 149 <p> 150 Bridge addresses are not publicly listed in the main Tor directory 151 to prevent them from being easily blocked by censors. Instead, 152 bridge addresses are distributed through various channels, such 153 as email lists, websites, or directly from trusted individuals. 154 </p> 155 156 <p> 157 Bridges often use techniques to obfuscate their traffic to make it 158 harder for censors to identify and block them. This can include 159 using protocols like obfs4 (obfuscated TCP) or meek, which disguise 160 Tor traffic as ordinary web traffic. When a user wants to connect 161 to the Tor network using a bridge, they configure their Tor client 162 to use the bridge's address. The Tor client then establishes a 163 connection to the bridge, which acts as an entry point to the Tor network. 164 </p> 165 166 <p> 167 Once the connection to the bridge is established, the Tor client negotiates 168 a circuit through the Tor network as usual. This circuit typically consists 169 of three nodes: the bridge itself, a middle node, and an exit node. 170 </p> 171 172 <p> 173 By using bridges, users can access the Tor network without revealing their 174 intention to connect to Tor, making it more difficult for censors to block 175 or recognize their access. Additionally, the use of obfuscation techniques 176 helps to further disguise Tor traffic, enhancing users' privacy and security. 177 </p> 178 179 <br> 180 181 <span style="color:#ff6600"> 182 <h1 style="font-size:25px">Snowflake</h1> 183 </span> 184 185 <p> 186 Snowflake is a system that allows people from anywhere in the world to access 187 censored websites and applications. Similar to VPNs that help users bypass 188 internet censorship, Snowflake helps you avoid being noticed by internet 189 censors by disguising your internet activity to appear as if you are 190 using the internet for a regular video or voice call. 191 </p> 192 193 <p> 194 There are numerous tools such as: B. Snowflake, which "transform" Internet 195 activity, each using a different technique. Some redirect internet traffic 196 to appear to come from popular cloud providers such as Microsoft Azure and 197 Amazon Web Services. Others encrypt Internet traffic to make it appear 198 completely random. 199 </p> 200 201 <p> 202 Therefore, it becomes burdensome for censors to attempt to block such 203 circumvention tools, as it would require blocking large portions of 204 the Internet to achieve the original goal. 205 </p> 206 207 <p> 208 Essentially, both Snowflake and a Tor bridge allow the user to access 209 the Tor network to bypass censorship and surveillance. Both serve the 210 purpose of promoting internet freedom. The main difference is how they 211 work and how they are deployed. While a Tor bridge is a specialized 212 infrastructure that anonymizes traffic, Snowflake uses volunteers 213 to serve as a proxy for other people's traffic. In the end, 214 however, both offer the user a similar benefit: anonymous 215 access to the free Internet. 216 </p> 217 218 <p> 219 You can join thousands of volunteers from around the world who have 220 installed and are running a Snowflake proxy. You don't have to worry 221 about what websites people are accessing through your Snowflake proxy. 222 Their visible IP address will be the same as their Tor exit node, not yours. 223 </p> 224 225 <p> 226 To learn more about Snowflake, see <a class="text-link" href="https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/pluggable-transports/snowflake/-/wikis/Technical%20Overview">TOR's Snowflake Technical Overview</a>. 227 </p> 228 229 <p> 230 There are different ways to run a Snowflake proxy, with the easiest one 231 being the Firefox, Chrome or Edge browser extensions. 232 </p> 233 234 <p> 235 I implemented Snowflake right here on this site too, just 236 enable it down below and keep this browser tab open! 237 This will also tell you when someone proxies their 238 connection through your internet connection to bypass 239 their ISP's or gonvermental restrictions and how many used it 240 in the last 24 hours. 241 </p> 242 243 <br> 244 245 <iframe class="snowflake" src="https://snowflake.torproject.org/embed.html" width="320" height="240" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> 246 247 <br> 248 249 <p> 250 NOTE: Avoid sharing if you are in previously mentioned censored locations. 251 </p> 252 253 <!-- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --> 254 255 </section> 256 <hr /> 257 <footer class="post-footer"> 258 <a href="/wiki/TOR/TOR.html" class="cta-button">← Back</a> 259 </footer> 260 </main> 261 </body> 262 </html>