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10) <h2>The Legal FAQ for Tor Relay Operators.</h2>

11) <hr>

12) 

13) <p><strong>FAQ written by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). Last
14) updated April 21, 2014.</strong></p>
15) 
16) <p><em>NOTE: This FAQ is for informational purposes only and does not

17) constitute legal advice. Our aim is to provide a general description of
18) the legal issues surrounding Tor in the United States. Different factual
19) situations and different legal jurisdictions will result in different
20) answers to a number of questions. Therefore, please do not act on this

21) information alone; if you have any specific legal problems, issues,
22) or questions, seek a complete review of your situation with a lawyer
23) licensed to practice in your jurisdiction.</em></p>
24) 
25) <p>Also, if you received this
26) document from anywhere besides the EFF web site or <a

27) href="<page eff/tor-legal-faq>">https://www.torproject.org/eff/tor-legal-faq.html</a>,
28) it may be out of date. Follow the link to get the latest version.</p>

29) 
30) <p>Got a DMCA notice? Check out our <a href="<page
31) eff/tor-dmca-response>">sample response letter</a>!</p>
32) 

33) <h2>General Information</h2>

34) 
35) <h3>Has anyone ever been sued or prosecuted for running Tor?</h3>
36) 
37) <p><b>No</b>, we aren't aware of anyone being sued or prosecuted in the
38) United States just for running a Tor relay. Further, we believe that
39) running a Tor relay &mdash; including an exit relay that allows people to
40) anonymously send and receive traffic &mdash; is legal under U.S. law.</p>
41) 
42) <h3>Should I use Tor or encourage the use of Tor for illegal purposes?</h3>
43) 

44) <p><b>No.</b> Tor has been developed to be a tool for free expression,
45) privacy, and human rights. It is not a tool designed or intended to be
46) used to break the law, either by Tor users or Tor relay operators.</p>

47) 
48) <h3>Can EFF promise that I won't get in trouble for running a Tor
49) relay?</h3>
50) 

51) <p><b>No.</b> All new technologies create legal uncertainties, and Tor

52) is no exception. We cannot guarantee that you will never face any legal
53) liability as a result of running a Tor relay. However, EFF believes so
54) strongly that those running Tor relays shouldn't be liable for traffic
55) that passes through the relay that we're running our own middle relay.</p>
56) 
57) <h3>Will EFF represent me if I get in trouble for running a Tor relay?</h3>
58) 
59) <p><b>Maybe.</b> While EFF cannot promise legal representation for all Tor
60) relay operators, it will assist relay operators in assessing the situation
61) and will try to locate qualified legal counsel when necessary. Inquiries
62) to EFF for the purpose of securing legal representation or referrals
63) should be directed to our intake coordinator by sending an email to <a
64) href="mailto:info@eff.org">info@eff.org</a> . Such inquiries will be kept
65) confidential subject to the limits of the attorney/client privilege. Note
66) that although EFF cannot practice law outside of the United States,
67) it will still try to assist non-U.S. relay operators in finding local
68) representation.</p>
69) 
70) <h3>Should I contact the Tor developers when I have legal questions

71) about Tor or to inform them if I suspect Tor is being used for illegal

72) purposes?</h3>
73) 

74) <p><b>No.</b> Tor's developers are available to answer technical
75) questions, but they are not lawyers and cannot give legal advice. Nor do
76) they have any ability to prevent illegal activity that may occur through

77) Tor relays. Furthermore, your communications with Tor's developers
78) are not protected by any legal privilege, so law enforcement or civil
79) litigants could subpoena and obtain any information you give to them.</p>
80) 
81) <p>You can contact <a href="mailto:info@eff.org">info@eff.org</a> if
82) you face a specific legal issue. We will try to assist you, but given
83) EFF's small size, we cannot guarantee that we can help everyone.</p>
84) 
85) <h3>Do Tor's core developers make any promises about the trustworthiness
86) or reliability of Tor relays that are listed in their directory?</h3>
87) 

88) <p><b>No.</b> Although the developers attempt to verify that Tor relays

89) listed in the directory maintained by the core developers are stable
90) and have adequate bandwidth, neither they nor EFF can guarantee the
91) personal trustworthiness or reliability of the individuals who run those
92) relays. Tor's core developers further reserve the right to refuse a Tor
93) relay operator's request to be listed in their directory or to remove
94) any relay from their directory for any reason.</p>
95) 

96) <h2>Exit Relays</h2>

97) 

98) <p>Exit relays raise special concerns because the traffic that exits
99) from them can be traced back to the relay's IP address. While we believe

100) that running an exit relay is legal, it is statistically likely that an
101) exit relay will at some point be used for illegal purposes, which may
102) attract the attention of private litigants or law enforcement. An exit
103) relay may forward traffic that is considered unlawful, and that traffic
104) may be attributed to the operator of a relay. If you are not willing to
105) deal with that risk, a bridge or middle relay may be a better fit for
106) you. These relays do not directly forward traffic to the Internet and so
107) can't be easily mistaken for the origin of allegedly unlawful content.</p>
108) 

109) <p>The Tor Project's blog has some excellent <a
110) href="https://blog.torproject.org/blog/tips-running-exit-node-minimal-harassment">recommendations</a>

111) for running an exit with as little risk as possible. We suggest that
112) you review their advice before setting up an exit relay.</p>
113) 
114) <h3>Should I run an exit relay from my home?</h3>

115) 
116) <p><b>No.</b> If law enforcement becomes interested in traffic from your
117) exit relay, it's possible that officers will seize your computer. For
118) that reason, it's best not to run your exit relay in your home or using

119) your home Internet connection.</p>
120) 

121) <p>Instead, consider running your exit relay in a <a
122) href="https://trac.torproject.org/projects/tor/wiki/doc/GoodBadISPs">commercial
123) facility</a> that is supportive of Tor. Have a separate IP address for

124) your exit relay, and don't route your own traffic through it.</p>
125) 

126) <p>Of course, you should avoid keeping any sensitive or personal

127) information on the computer hosting your exit relay, and you never should
128) use that machine for any illegal purpose.</p>
129) 
130) <h3>Should I tell my ISP that I'm running an exit relay?</h3>
131) 
132) <p><b>Yes.</b> Make sure you have a Tor-friendly ISP that
133) knows you're running an exit relay and supports you in that
134) goal. This will help ensure that your Internet access isn't
135) cut off due to abuse complaints. The Tor community maintains a <a

136) href="https://trac.torproject.org/projects/tor/wiki/TheOnionRouter/GoodBadISPs">list</a>

137) of ISPs that are particularly Tor-savvy, as well as ones that aren't.</p>
138) 
139) <h3>Is it a good idea to let others know that I'm running an exit relay?</h3>

140) 
141) <p><b>Yes.</b> Be as transparent as possible about the fact that you're

142) running an exit relay. If your exit traffic draws the attention of
143) the government or disgruntled private party, you want them to figure
144) out quickly and easily that you are part of the Tor network and not

145) responsible for the content. This could mean the difference between
146) having your computer seized by law enforcement and being left alone.</p>

147) 

148) <p>The Tor Project <a
149) href="https://blog.torproject.org/blog/tips-running-exit-node-minimal-harassment">suggests</a>
150) the following ways to let others know that you're running an exit
151) relay:</p>

152) 

153) <ul>
154) <li>Set up a reverse DNS name for the IP address that makes clear that
155) the computer is an exit relay.</li>
156) <li>Set up a notice like <a

157) href="https://gitweb.torproject.org/tor.git/blob_plain/HEAD:/contrib/operator-tools/tor-exit-notice.html">this</a>

158) to explain that you're running an exit relay that's part of the Tor
159) network.</li>

160) <li>If possible, get an <a href="https://www.arin.net/">ARIN</a>

161) registration for your exit relay that displays contact information for

162) you, not your ISP. This way, you'll receive any abuse complaints and
163) can respond to them directly. Otherwise, try to ensure that your ISP

164) forwards abuse complaints that it receives to you.</li>
165) </ul>

166) 
167) <h3>Should I snoop on the plaintext traffic that exits through my Tor
168) relay?</h3>
169) 

170) <p><b>No.</b> You may be technically capable of modifying the Tor source
171) code or installing additional software to monitor or log plaintext that

172) exits your relay. However, Tor relay operators in the United States
173) can possibly create civil and even criminal liability for themselves
174) under state or federal wiretap laws if they monitor, log, or disclose
175) Tor users' communications, while non-U.S. operators may be subject
176) to similar laws. Do not examine anyone's communications without first
177) talking to a lawyer.</p>
178) 
179) <h3>If I receive a subpoena or other information request from law
180) enforcement or anyone else related to my Tor relay, what should I do?</h3>
181) 

182) <p><b>Educate them about Tor.</b> In most instances, properly configured

183) Tor relays will have no useful data for inquiring parties, and you should
184) feel free to educate them on this point. To the extent you do maintain
185) logs, however, you should not disclose them to any third party without
186) first consulting a lawyer. In the United States, such a disclosure may
187) violate the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, and relay operators
188) outside of the United States may be subject to similar data protection
189) laws.</p>

190) 
191) <p>You may receive legal inquiries where you are prohibited by law from

192) telling anyone about the request. We believe that, at least in the United
193) States, such gag orders do not prevent you from talking to a lawyer,
194) including calling a lawyer to find representation. Inquiries to EFF
195) for the purpose of securing legal representation should be directed to
196) our intake coordinator (info at eff.org) Such inquiries will be kept
197) confidential subject to the limits of the attorney/client privilege.</p>
198) 
199) <p>For more information about responding to abuse
200) complaints and other inquiries, check out the <a
201) href="<page docs/faq-abuse>">Tor
202) Abuse FAQ</a> and the collection of <a

203) href="https://trac.torproject.org/projects/tor/wiki/TheOnionRouter/TorAbuseTemplates">abuse
204) response templates</a> on the Tor Project’s website.</p>

205) 
206) <p>For information on what to do if law enforcement
207) seeks access to your digital devices, check out EFF’s <a
208) href="https://www.eff.org/wp/know-your-rights">Know Your Rights</a>
209) guide.</p>
210) 
211) <h3>My ISP, university, etc. just sent me a DMCA notice. What should
212) I do?</h3>
213) 
214) <p>EFF has written a <a href="<page eff/tor-dmca-response>">short
215) template</a> to help you write a response to your ISP, university, etc.,
216) to let them know about the details of the Digital Millennium Copyright
217) Act’s safe harbor, and how Tor fits in. Note that template only
218) refers to U.S. jurisdictions, and is intended only to address copyright
219) complaints that are based on a relay of allegedly infringing material
220) through the Tor node.</p>

221) 
222) <p>If you like, you should consider submitting a copy of your notice to

223) <a href="https://www.chillingeffects.org/">Chilling Effects</a>. This

224) will help us recognize trends and issues that the lawyers might want to
225) focus on. Chilling Effects encourages submissions from people outside
226) the United States too.</p>

227) 
228) <p>EFF believes that Tor relays should be protected from copyright
229) liability for the acts of their users because a Tor relay operator
230) can raise an immunity defense under the DMCA as well as defenses
231) under copyright's secondary liability doctrines. However, no court
232) has yet addressed these issues in the context of Tor itself. If
233) you are uncomfortable with this uncertainty, you may consider using
234) a <href="<page docs/faq>#ExitPolicies">reduced exit policy</a> (such
235) as the default policy suggested by the Tor Project) to try to minimize
236) traffic types that are often targeted in copyright complaints.</p>
237) 
238) <p>If you are a Tor relay operator willing to stand up and help set
239) a clear legal precedent establishing that merely running a relay
240) does not create copyright liability for either operators or their
241) bandwidth providers, EFF is interested in hearing from you. Read more <a

242) href="https://lists.torproject.org/pipermail/tor-talk/2005-October/016301.html">here</a>
243) about being EFF's test case.</p>

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