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Tor’s shadowy reputation will only end if we all use it | Engadget
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this post was submitted on 29 Jul 2023
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I've always wondered what it would be like, but I've also heard so many creepy stories about it I just don't want someone hacking my bank because I'm an idiot. So I stay away from it. I wish I was more tech savy.
Are you confusing Tor and something like deep/dark web? Because Tor itself is just a webbrowser, it's basically a Firefox with some modifications for stricter privacy.
There's a TOR browser, but calling tor "just a browser" is really odd and not really correct. The TOR project is the routing protocol that bounces your traffic around. You can do so through the TOR browser, but the browser isn't TOR. It also isn't the only way to use TOR.
Also, while HTTPS is close to universal now, it's still possible to use HTTP and theoretically a malicious exit node could modify any unencrypted traffic.
Thank you for clarification! Of course I meant the TOR browser client itself, should have been more precise.
Possibly, I know Tor is a browser but because it can be used to access deep/dark web I don't trust myself with it. 100% out of acknowledged ignorance yes
I promise you that like 90% of the creepy stories you've heard are people either exaggerating or just straight-up lying to sound cool on the internet. The kind of stuff that actually needs to operate over the TOR network doesn't exactly want to be easily discoverable by normal people.
You're no more likely to accidentally stumble across illegal / dangerous content while using TOR than you are while using any other browser.
Isn't the problem was that back then everyone used to be a node (was it exit node?), but I heard today it's not the case anymore so no one can actually link you to other bad things other people do.
To simply use TOR you do not need to run any kind of guard/middle/exit relay (this has always been the case), but yes there is the risk of being held accountable for other users data while hosting an exit relay.
This hasn't gone away thanks to any legal precedent as far as I'm aware, so I imagine it all depends on the tech literacy of your local jurisdiction & how good of a lawyer you can afford.
Thanks for the correction.
Thanks for the advice! I'll keep in mind.
As long as you stay off of any .onion sites, there won't be any difference w.r.t. dark/deep web access. If a domain doesn't end in .onion, then it can be accessed with a regular web browser anyway.
I recall reading of instances of some Tor exit nodes injecting malware into downloads. It may be a concern or it may not, but I didn't understand the risk well enough myself or how avoidable it was or wasn't, which is why I avoided Tor.
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Thanks for the info! I'll save this comment for further study.
Hate to burst your bubble but many of the stories are just that, stories. Vast majority of the onion sites out there are either forums like 4chan or hobbyist sites like the old days of the internet.
Illegal websites do exist but they're rare and hard to find, they also are subject to being taken down. They're nothing like the stories though. In fact majority of the websites that exist when you search for these topics are just bitcoin scams, i.e. a livestream website that asks you to pay $200 in bitcoin to enter, almost certainly a scam because livestreaming over Tor is terrible due to low spead and it breaks the anonymity due to generating tons of unique traffic.
TL;DR Tor is a tool that can be used for privacy on the clearnet it can also be used to host your own onion sites. Dark web stories do have a small element of truth to them but are mostly scary stories to tell in the dark.
Why, no, thank you, I don't have any appreciation for this bubble you are bursting. I figured some had to be just tales but it's hard to know exactly how much of it is bs. So thanks.
That's good, Happy I could help. I say that because I know that some people get very upset by internet myth-busting because the scary stories are kind of fun. I can get that I do like horror movies and scary stories, but I also value education and many times people present dark web horror as if it most of it were real.
I also realize that presenting what are for the most part hobby sites run by passionate individuals as evil, dark, or illegal for the purpose of telling scary stories for clout is actually pretty gross, dishonest, and harmful. Which at least in my opinion really outweighs any enjoyment these stories might give by being scary stories, because in essence they demonize the idea of hobbyists running their own hidden websites but possibly also decentralized services as a whole, as an example I've already heard some people talking about how decentralized messaging platforms like Matrix are "creepy" or "like the dark web" and also similar stories about Lemmy or Masotodon as well. The irony is that people say you can't find evil dark stuff on the clearnet but the most evil sites I've seen are on the clearnet and actually are well known for their awfulness, they may also have onion versions but they're for the most part publicly visible.