tor-webwml.git

@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@

     Tor was originally designed, implemented, and deployed as a

     third-generation <a href="http://www.onion-router.net/">onion routing

     project of the Naval Research Laboratory</a>.  It was originally

-    developed with the U.S. Navy in mind, primarily for the purpose of

+    developed with the U.S. Navy in mind, for the primary purpose of

     protecting government communications.  Today, it is used every day

     for a wide variety of purposes by the military, journalists, law

     enforcement officers, activists, and many others. Here are some of

@@ -31,8 +31,8 @@

     <hr>

     <ul>

     <li><strong>They protect their privacy from unscrupulous marketers and identity thieves.</strong>

-    Internet Service Providers (ISPs) <a href="http://seekingalpha.com/article/29449-compete-ceo-isps-sell-clickstreams-for-5-a-month">sell

-    your Internet browsing records</a> to marketers and anyone else

+    Internet Service Providers (ISPs) <a href="http://seekingalpha.com/article/29449-compete-ceo-isps-sell-clickstreams-for-5-a-month">

+    sell your Internet browsing records</a> to marketers or anyone else

     willing to pay for it. ISPs typically say that

     they anonymize the data by not providing personally identifiable information, but

     <a href="http://www.wired.com/politics/security/news/2006/08/71579?currentPage=all">this

@@ -47,7 +47,7 @@

     </li>

     <li><strong>They protect their children online.</strong>

     You've told your kids they shouldn't share personally identifying information online, but they may be sharing their location simply

-    by not concealing their IP address. Increasingly, IP addresses can literally be <a href="http://whatismyipaddress.com/">mapped to a city or even street location</a>, and can <a href="http://whatsmyip.org/more/">reveal other information</a> about how you are connecting to the Internet.

+    by not concealing their IP address. Increasingly, IP addresses can be <a href="http://whatismyipaddress.com/">literally mapped to a city or even street location</a>, and can <a href="http://whatsmyip.org/more/">reveal other information</a> about how you are connecting to the Internet.

     In the United States, the government is pushing to make this mapping increasingly precise.

     </li>

     <li><strong>They research sensitive topics.</strong>

@@ -74,20 +74,20 @@

     </li>

     <li><strong>Hidden services:</strong>

-    When the Internet was designed by DARPA, its primary purpose was to facilitate distributed, robust communications in case of

-    local strikes.  However, some functions must be centralized, such as command and control sites.  By their nature, Internet protocols

-    reveal the geographic location of any server that is reachable online.  Tor's <a href="<page docs/hidden-services>">hidden service capability</a> allows military command and

+    When the Internet was designed by DARPA, its primary purpose was to be able to facilitate distributed, robust communications in case of

+    local strikes.  However, some functions must be centralized, such as command and control sites.  It's the nature of the Internet protocols to

+    reveal the geographic location of any server that is reachable online.  Tor's hidden services capacity allows military command and

     control to be physically secure from discovery and takedown.

     </li>

     <li><strong>Intelligence gathering:</strong>

     Military personnel need to use electronic resources run and monitored by insurgents. They do not want the webserver logs on an insurgent website

-    to record a military address, thereby revealing that the site is under surveillance.

+    to record a military address, thereby revealing the surveillance.

     </li>

     </ul>

     <a name="journalist"></a>

     <img src="$(IMGROOT)/media.jpg" alt="Journalists and the Media">

-    <h2><a class="anchor" href="#journalist">Journalists and their audiences use Tor</a></h2>

+    <h2><a class="anchor" href="#journalist">Journalists and their audience use Tor</a></h2>

     <hr>

     <ul>

     <li><strong><a href="http://www.rsf.org/">Reporters without Borders</a></strong>

@@ -96,8 +96,8 @@

     </li>

     <li><strong>The US <a href="http://www.ibb.gov/">International Broadcasting Bureau</a></strong>

     (Voice of America/Radio Free Europe/Radio Free Asia) supports Tor development to help Internet users in countries without

-    safe access to free media.  Tor preserves the ability of persons behind national firewalls, or under

-    the surveillance of repressive regimes, to obtain a global perspective on controversial topics including democracy,

+    safe access to free media.  Tor preserves the ability of persons behind national firewalls or under

+    the surveillance of repressive regimes to obtain a global perspective on controversial topics including democracy,

     economics and religion.

     </li>

     <li><strong>Citizen journalists in China</strong> use Tor to write about

@@ -125,13 +125,13 @@

     <li><strong>Sting operations:</strong>

     Similarly, anonymity allows law officers to engage in online

     “undercover ” operations.  Regardless of how good an

-    undercover officer's “street cred” may be, if his

-    communications come from IP addresses allocated to the police, his cover is blown.

+    undercover officer's “street cred” may be, if the

+    communications include IP ranges from police addresses, the cover is blown.

     </li>

     <li><strong>Truly anonymous tip lines:</strong>

     While online anonymous tip lines are popular, without anonymity

     software, they are far less useful.  Sophisticated sources understand that

-    although a name or e-mail address is not attached to information, server

+    although a name or email address is not attached to information, server

     logs can identify them very quickly.  As a result, tip line web sites that

     do not encourage anonymity are limiting the sources of their tips.

     </li>

@@ -145,7 +145,7 @@

     <li><strong>Human rights activists use Tor to anonymously report abuses from

     danger zones.</strong>  Internationally, labor rights workers use Tor and other

     forms of online and offline anonymity to organize workers in accordance

-    with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Even though their actions are within

+    with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Even though they are within

     the law, it does not mean they are safe. Tor provides the ability to

     avoid persecution while still raising a voice.

     </li>

@@ -155,14 +155,14 @@

     change rely on Tor for basic privacy during legitimate activities.

     </li>

     <li><strong><a href="http://hrw.org/doc/?t=internet">Human Rights Watch</a></strong>

-    recommends Tor in their report,

-    &ldquo;<a href="http://www.hrw.org/reports/2006/china0806/">Race to the Bottom: Corporate

+    recommends Tor in their report, “

+    <a href="http://www.hrw.org/reports/2006/china0806/">Race to the Bottom: Corporate

     Complicity in Chinese Internet Censorship</a>.&rdquo; The study

     co-author interviewed Roger Dingledine, Tor project leader,

-    regarding Tor use.  They cover Tor in the section on how to breach the <a

+    on Tor use.  They cover Tor in the section on how to breach the <a

     href="http://www.hrw.org/reports/2006/china0806/3.htm#_Toc142395820">“Great

-    Firewall of China&rdquo;</a>, and recommend that human rights workers throughout

-    the globe use Tor for “secure browsing and communications”.

+    Firewall of China,&rdquo;</a> and recommend that human rights workers throughout

+    the globe use Tor for “secure browsing and communications.”

     </li>

     <li> Tor has consulted with and volunteered help to <strong>Amnesty International's

     recent <a href="http://irrepressible.info/">corporate responsibility campaign</a></strong>.

@@ -172,7 +172,7 @@

     <li><a href="http://www.globalvoicesonline.org">Global Voices</a>

     recommends Tor, especially for <strong>anonymous blogging</strong>,

     throughout their <a href="http://advocacy.globalvoicesonline.org/projects/guide/">

-    web site</a>.

+    web site.</a>

     </li>

     <li>In the US, the Supreme Court recently stripped legal protections from

     government whistleblowers.  But whistleblowers working for governmental

@@ -181,8 +181,8 @@

     </li>

     <li>A contact of ours who works with a public health nonprofit in

     Africa reports that his nonprofit <strong>must budget 10% to cover various sorts of corruption</strong>,

-    mostly bribes and such.  When that percentage rises steeply, not only are they unable to afford the money, but they

-    cannot afford to complain — this is the point at which open objection can

+    mostly bribes and such.  When that percentage rises steeply, not only can they not afford the money, but they can

+    not afford to complain — this is the point at which open objection can

     become dangerous.  So his nonprofit has been working to

     <strong>use Tor to safely whistleblow on government corruption</strong> in order to continue their work.

     </li>

@@ -191,17 +191,17 @@

     local residents to <strong>urge reform in the company</strong> that dominated the town's

     economic and government affairs. She is fully cognizant that the kind of

     organizing she was doing <strong>could lead to harm or &ldquo;fatal

-    accidents&rdquo;</strong>.

+    accidents.&rdquo;</strong>

     </li>

     <li>In east Asia, some labor organizers use anonymity to <strong>reveal information

-    regarding sweatshops</strong> that produce goods for western countries, and to

+    regarding sweatshops</strong> that produce goods for western countries and to

     organize local labor.

     </li>

     <li>

     Tor can help activists avoid government or corporate censorship that hinders organization.

-    In one such case,

-    <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/07/24/telus-sites050724.html">a Canadian ISP blocked access to a union website</a>

-    used by its own employees to help organize a strike.

+    In one such case, a

+    <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/07/24/telus-sites050724.html">Canadian ISP blocked access to a union website used by their own employees</a>

+    to help organize a strike.

     </li>

     </ul>

@@ -246,23 +246,23 @@

     of information on Internet attacks.  Such a repository requires members

     to report breaches to a central group, who correlates attacks to detect

     coordinated patterns and send out alerts.  But if a specific bank in St. Louis is breached, they don't want an attacker watching the incoming

-    traffic to such a repository to where the report is

-    sent from.  Even if every packet were encrypted, the IP

+    traffic to such a repository to be able to track where information is

+    coming from.  Even though every packet were encrypted, the IP

     address would betray the location of a compromised system.  Tor allows

-    such repositories of sensitive information to resist eavesdropping.

+    such repositories of sensitive information to resist compromises.

     </li>

     <li><strong>Seeing your competition as your market does:</strong>

-    If you try to check out your competitor's pricing, you may find no

+    If you try to check out a competitor's pricing, you may find no

     information or misleading information on their web site.  This is because

     their web server may be keyed to detect connections from competitors,

-    and block your staff or spread disinformation to them.  Tor allows a business

-    to view its sector as the general public would view it.

+    and block or spread disinformation to your staff.  Tor allows a business

+    to view their sector as the general public would view it.

     </li>

     <li><strong>Keeping strategies confidential:</strong>

     An investment bank, for example, might not want industry snoopers to be

     able to track what web sites their analysts are watching.  The strategic

-    importance of traffic patterns, and the vulnerability of such data

-    to surveillance, is starting to be more widely recognized in several areas

+    importance of traffic patterns, and the vulnerability of the surveillance

+    of such data, is starting to be more widely recognized in several areas

     of the business world.

     </li>

     <li><strong>Accountability:</strong>

@@ -290,11 +290,11 @@

     <h2><a class="anchor" href="#itprofessionals">IT Professionals use Tor</a></h2>

     <hr>

     <ul>

-    <li>To verify IP-address-based firewall rules: A firewall may have some policies that only allow certain IP addresses or ranges to access a site. Tor can be used to verify those configurations by using an IP number outside the company's alloted IP block.</li>

-    <li>To bypass their own security systems for sensitive professional activities: For instance, a company may have a strict policy regarding the material employees can view on the internet. When a log review reveals a possible violation, Tor can be used to verify the information without putting an exception into corporate security systems.</li>

+    <li>To verify IP based firewall rules: A firewall may have some policies that only allow certain IP addresses or ranges. Tor can be used to verify those configurations by using an IP number outside of the company's alloted IP block.</li>

+    <li>To bypass their own security systems for sensitive professional activities: For instance, a company may have a strict policy regarding the material employees can view on the internet. A log review reveals a possible violation. Tor can be used to verify the information without an exception being put into corporate security systems.</li>

     <li>To connect back to deployed services: A network engineer can use Tor to remotely connect back to services, without the need for an external machine and user account, as part of operational testing.</li>

-    <li>To access Internet resources: Acceptable use policy for IT Staff and normal employees is usually different. Tor can allow unfettered access to the Internet while leaving standard security policies in place.</li>

-    <li>To work around ISP network outages: Sometimes when an ISP is having routing or DNS problems, Tor can make Internet resources available, when the actual ISP is malfunctioning. This can be invaluable is crisis situations.</li>

+    <li>To access internet resources: Acceptable use policy for IT Staff and normal employees is usually different. Tor can allow unfettered access to the internet while leaving standard security policies in place.</li>

+    <li>To work around ISP network outages: Sometimes when an ISP is having routing or DNS problems, Tor can make internet resources available, when the actual ISP is malfunctioning. This can be invaluable is crisis situations. </li>

     </ul>

     <p>

@@ -310,15 +310,15 @@

     <p> Like any technology, from pencils to cellphones, anonymity can be used for both good and bad.  You have probably seen some of the vigorous

     debate (<a href="http://www.wired.com/politics/security/commentary/securitymatters/2006/01/70000">pro</a>,

     <a href="http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_4.html#kelly">con</a>, and <a

-    href="http://web.mit.edu/gtmarx/www/anon.html">academic</a>) over anonymity. The Tor Project is based on the belief that anonymity is not

-    just a good idea some of the time &mdash; it is a requirement for a free and functioning society.  The EFF maintains <a href="http://www.eff.org/issues/anonymity">a good overview of how anonymity was crucial to the founding of the United States</a>.  Anonymity is recognized by US courts as a fundamental and important right. In fact, governments mandate anonymity in many cases themselves:

+    href="http://web.mit.edu/gtmarx/www/anon.html">academic</a>) over anonymity. The Tor project is based on the belief that anonymity is not

+    just a good idea some of the time &mdash; it is a requirement for a free and functioning society.  The <a href="http://www.eff.org/issues/anonymity">EFF maintains a good overview</a> of how anonymity was crucial to the founding of the United States.  Anonymity is recognized by US courts as a fundamental and important right. In fact, governments mandate anonymity in many cases themselves:

     <a href="https://www.crimeline.co.za/default.asp">police tip lines</a>,

     <a href="http://www.texasbar.com/Content/ContentGroups/Public_Information1/Legal_Resources_Consumer_Information/Family_Law1/Adoption_Options.htm#sect2">adoption services</a>,

     <a href="http://writ.news.findlaw.com/aronson/20020827.html">police officer identities</a>,

     and so forth. It would be impossible to rehash the entire anonymity debate here — it is too large an issue with too many nuances, and there

     are plenty of other places where this information can be found. We do have a <a href="<page docs/faq-abuse>">Tor abuse</a> page describing some of

     the possible abuse cases for Tor, but suffice it to say that if you want to abuse the system, you'll either find it mostly closed for your

-    purposes (e.g., the majority of Tor relays do not support SMTP, in order to prevent anonymous e-mail spamming), or if you're one of the

+    purposes (e.g. the majority of Tor relays do not support SMTP in order to prevent anonymous email spamming), or if you're one of the

     <a href="http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2005/12/computer_crime_1.html">Four Horsemen of the Information Apocalypse</a>,

     you have better options than Tor. While not dismissing the potential abuses of Tor,

     this page shows a few of the many important ways anonymity is used online today.</p>