TOR compromised by NSA.

I searched and did not see this posted yet. TOR the anonymity service used by many to try and remain secure has been compromised by the NSA and has been for years apparently.

According to a top-secret NSA summary of the meeting, Dingledine told the assembled NSA staff that his service, called Tor, offered anonymity to people who needed it badly — to keep business secrets, protect their identities from oppressive political regimes or conduct research without revealing themselves. In the minds of NSA officials, Tor was offering protection to terrorists and other intelligence targets. As he spoke to the NSA, Dingledine said in an interview Friday, he suspected the agency was attempting to break into Tor, which is used by millions of people around the world to shield their identities. Documents provided to The Washington Post by former agency contractor Edward Snowden show that he was right. Beginning at least a year before Dingledine’s visit, the NSA has mounted increasingly successful attacks to unmask the identities and locations of users of Tor. In some cases, the agency has succeeded in blocking access to the anonymous network, diverting Tor users to insecure channels. In others, it has been able to “stain” anonymous traffic as it enters the Tor network, enabling the NSA to identify users as it exits. Tor works by encrypting traffic repeatedly as it flows across a global network of servers, mostly run by volunteers. The traffic, which can include e-mails, information from a Web site and almost anything else on the Internet, is supposed to arrive at its destination with no identifying information about its origin or the path it took. The Snowden documents, including a detailed PowerPoint presentation, suggest that the NSA cannot see directly inside Tor’s anonymous network but that it has repeatedly uncloaked users by circumventing Tor’s protections. The documents also illustrate the power of the NSA to at least partially penetrate what have long been considered the most secure corners of the Internet.

washingtonpost.com... a1f23cda135e_story.html

Noted from the designer of TOR.

DYNAMIC PAGE — HIGHEST POSSIBLE CLASSIFICATION TOP SECRET // COMINT // REL TO USA, AUS, CAN, GBR, NZL Roger Dingledine at NSA NOV 2007 From PE Contents * 1 (U) Talk by Roger Dingledine at NSA, 11/01/2007 at R&E (Sponsored by NSA RT) o 1.1 (U) Who are TOR Customers? o 1.2 (U) Anonymity System Concepts o 1.3 (U) TOR Issues (U) Talk by Roger Dingledine at NSA, 11/01/2007 at R&E (Sponsored by NSA RT) (U) Roger Dingledine, now of Torproject.org, was one of the principle inventors or TOR. Current usage statistics quoted are 200K users and 1K servers. When asked about trends, he had no concrete data - Being a non-profit open-source effort, the collector of statistics has not been active recently.

washingtonpost.com... _story.html

From The Guardian article and power point presentation.

Top-secret NSA documents, disclosed by whistleblower Edward Snowden, reveal that the agency's current successes against Tor rely on identifying users and then attacking vulnerable software on their computers. One technique developed by the agency targeted the Firefox web browser used with Tor, giving the agency full control over targets' computers, including access to files, all keystrokes and all online activity. But the documents suggest that the fundamental security of the Tor service remains intact. One top-secret presentation, titled 'Tor Stinks', states: "We will never be able to de-anonymize all Tor users all the time." It continues: "With manual analysis we can de-anonymize a very small fraction of Tor users," and says the agency has had "no success de-anonymizing a user in response" to a specific request. Another top-secret presentation calls Tor "the king of high-secure, low-latency internet anonymity". Tor – which stands for The Onion Router – is an open-source public project that bounces its users' internet traffic through several other computers, which it calls "relays" or "nodes", to keep it anonymous and avoid online censorship tools. It is relied upon by journalists, activists and campaigners in the US and Europe as well as in China, Iran and Syria, to maintain the privacy of their communications and avoid reprisals from government. To this end, it receives around 60% of its funding from the US government, primarily the State Department and the Department of Defense – which houses the NSA.

www.theguardian.com...

Link to documents. If someone can upload the slides it would be very helpful. I am limited on what I can do as I am using my phone.

'""Peeling back the layers of Tor with EgotisticalGiraffe' – read the document
Selected extracts show how NSA uses a technique with codename EgotisticalGiraffe to attack Tor users through vulnerable software on their computers."""

www.theguardian.com...

"'Tor Stinks' presentation – read the full document"

www.theguardian.com...

"
Tor: 'The king of high-secure, low-latency anonymity'
Extracts from top-secret NSA document acknowledge the fundamental security of the Tor protection tool and say 'there are no contenders to the throne in waiting'
NSA and GCHQ target Tor network that protects anonymity of web users
• Top-secret documents detail repeated efforts to crack Tor
• Tool is funded by US government and relied on by dissidents and activists
• Agencies have failed to break core security of network but have limited success in attacking users' computers
Why the NSA's attacks on the internet must be made public
Attacking Tor: how the NSA targets users' online anonymity
'Peeling back the layers of Tor with EgotisticalGiraffe' – read the document
'Tor Stinks' presentation – read the full document"

www.theguardian.com...

I suppose you should have known this was coming. There have been many very high profile takedowns of groups using TOR this year. Child porn rings have been dismantled worldwide that were using TOR to try and acheive anonymity. This week the Drug Site Silk Road which used TOR was taken down as well. I have never personally used TOR and have no real need to however I understand that there is a very real need by legitimate people to remain anonymous and have thier locations and identity hidden... I am not for the NSA's continued intrusion into every possible aspect of my life and your life as well. It is clear the NSA is not just using Prism to protect the Mainland from another. 9-11... It wants unchecked ability to spy on everyone for any reason at any given time.

There is no where on the Net to remain anonymous or hidden. Big Brother is definitely watching. This is very scary news.





'

reply to post by GArnold

My first post, I live in Canada which is essentially an annex of the U.S. I have been lurking in the shadows for quite some time, thought I would reply since I have just now finished watching the documentary "Terms and Conditions May Apply" which clearly outlines that any and all web based information is visible to any agency, or company with the right technology and backing from government legislation. Privacy is dead and we are allowing it based upon our simple day to day activities within this technological society of convenience. in my opinion.

Doublearies.

doublearies
reply to post by GArnold

 

My first post, I live in Canada which is essentially an annex of the U.S. I have been lurking in the shadows for quite some time, thought I would reply since I have just now finished watching the documentary "Terms and Conditions May Apply" which clearly outlines that any and all web based information is visible to any agency, or company with the right technology and backing from government legislation. Privacy is dead and we are allowing it based upon our simple day to day activities within this technological society of convenience. in my opinion.

Doublearies.

Yes exactly. The capabilities of the NSA is mind numbing. The Fourth admendment has been shredded. I am very much afraid that since the first stories broke since June that people have become apathetic to this whole thing. The bigger picture in this whole fiasco is truly frightening. Many of the protections American citizens have been promised have been stomped into the ground. The NSA is using thier abilities to snoop and spy on virtually every person and Country for any possible reason. It is sickening... It is even more sickening that people are apathetic to this. That is exactly the reason we find ourselves in this position to begin with. It bugs me that people go bonkers if they feel thier second admendment rights could be changed but the very ideals of freedom of thought and speech this Country was founded on seems to not make any difference to anyone. Half or more of these people do not understand the Second Admendment or what it was really designed for or even the Historical reasons for its inclusion to begin with.

The fact the NSA has compromised TOR is extremely worrying.

I meant to add this to my original post.

Since 2006, according to a 49-page research paper titled simply “Tor,” the agency has worked on several methods that, if successful, would allow the NSA to uncloak anonymous traffic on a “wide scale” — effectively by watching communications as they enter and exit the Tor system, rather than trying to follow them inside. One type of attack, for example, would identify users by minute differences in the clock times on their computers.

washingtonpost.com... a1f23cda135e_story.html

The following document is a 2006 research paper produced for the NSA's "Cryptanalysis and Exploitation Services" office. It lays out the technical features of Tor and proposes a number of theoretical and practical attacks, some of which the NSA developed and used in subsequent years. Among other things, the paper describes an NSA-written adaptation of Tor, "indistinguishable from an original Tor client," which enables the NSA to gather intelligence inside the network. It also describes two kinds of "denial of service" attacks against Tor, code-named Coil and Flower, which are used to divert would-be anonymous communications into open channels.

apps.washingtonpost.com...

GArnold
..would allow the NSA to uncloak anonymous traffic on a “wide scale” — effectively by watching communications as they enter and exit the Tor system, rather than trying to follow them inside.

It also describes two kinds of "denial of service" attacks against Tor, code-named Coil and Flower, which are used to divert would-be anonymous communications into open channels.

And thats really the weakness of TOR. It is a layer plastered over the open internet, rather than being a network designed as secure from the start.
And thats really what the world needs. A new secure net.

reply to post by GArnold


Find it really hard to believe how much people do not care about the Govts intrusion into your every day lives. If I had posted a thread about Breaking bad or Elvis I would have 65 flags and 100 replies. This is exactly the attitude the US govt was counting on as they continue to break every law imaginable and lie to the American public on a daily basis.

reply to post by GArnold


I suspect that NSA was monitoring enough tor traffic to solve the entire network and resolve the ips.

It is sad that people can't seem to care- maybe trained to believe they are so insignificant no one could possibly target them. They don't generally understand that people get used and manipulated when an agent, agency, or business finds it useful. Right now these powers have basically free reign to target any one for any purpose as long as they can pay for the intel. Just because an individual can't imagine a scenario in which they are targeted does not mean they won't be- if someone has a use for them.

I just don't think it's that big of a loss. It's been my experience that the TOR network was mostly used by pedophiles, drug dealers, thieves and forgers.

reply to post by allenidaho


It's not about tor it's about the surveillance net being so wide and deep it becomes too easy to violate the rights and freedom of people on a whim wo real world verification.

From Business Insider 4 days ago:

"http://www.businessinsider.com/how-the-nsa-helps-jsoc-2013-10"

Cut and paste above link.

With all of this controversy, I find it hard to believe how few remember two basic facts...

A) The internet was NOT created by Al Gore. It was created by DARPA. Is it all that shocking that quite possibly there could have been a back door to everything from day one? In the very infrastructure of our beloved internet?

B) TOR was originally developed by the US Navy. Something we now cling to, yet the lifeboat has the enemy's fingerprint all over it. I'll clarify this. The US Naval Research facility was the genesis of this project. Guess who was arm in arm with them? DARPA. Guess who loves them some DARPA ? The NSA.


I feel as stupid as most, as I one thought there was a chance for privacy, if not freedom online.



Yet all along, I've known these two facts.



-SN

allenidaho
I just don't think it's that big of a loss. It's been my experience that the TOR network was mostly used by pedophiles, drug dealers, thieves and forgers.

Hmmm.

Let's take that thinking a step further...

"Besides, who could possibly want to keep their identity private? You have to be afraid if you have something to hide!"


Am I that far off?





- SN

SadistNocturne

Hmmm.

Let's take that thinking a step further...

"Besides, who could possibly want to keep their identity private? You have to be afraid if you have something to hide!"

Am I that far off?

- SN

What? No. I use TOR every now and then. I was just making an observation on what I tend to see there.

allenidaho

SadistNocturne

Hmmm.

Let's take that thinking a step further...

"Besides, who could possibly want to keep their identity private? You have to be afraid if you have something to hide!"

Am I that far off?

- SN

What? No. I use TOR every now and then. I was just making an observation on what I tend to see there.

Cool. I was just looking to make the point that even though it may be a relative haven to those looking to break the law (not to mention the pedophiles) that it *is* at least one of the last ways we had at having any real privacy online.

Albeit, this situation was a brutal wake up call to me, making me realize the truth of the matter. The NSA and DARPA were directly involved in both the development and release of the Internet and TOR to the public, so therefore, assuming we had any real privacy using their playpen was a bit naive of me. I accept this. I won't be so naive again in my life.

Unfortunately, many who point out the idea that TOR is a haven for those wanting to break the law simply stop there. Well, they were doing bad things, so clamping down on TOR is a good thing! Unfortunately, I've always seen it as something more.



-SN

reply to post by GArnold


TOR was designed by the US Navy and as such must be somewhat easier than suspected to manipulate.

Word is out they are taking many dealers associated with Silk Road.

NOD, a well-known drug dealer on the defunct online black market Silk Road, has been arrested in Washington State, along with a partner. Across the Atlantic, four Silk Road users were arrested by British authorities "on suspicion of supplying controlled drugs." In Sweden, two Silk Road users have been arrested for allegedly selling marijuana on the site. British authorities say more arrests are coming. The method by which the U.S. arrests appear to have come about — routine package interdiction, then a simple investigation — suggests that other American dealers may be at risk. In addition, the charges aren't new or novel, but simple and very severe:

Further..

Regardless, this will send a shock through the so-called dark net. Feds are going after Silk Road like a simple drug ring, not an exotic website, and have been investigating it effectively since 2011. The relative difficulty of accessing Silk Road — setting up Tor, converting cash to Bitcoins, setting up encrypted communications — may have given users a sense of security and secrecy. But these technological safeguards aren't really safeguards at all: Buying and selling illegal substances through a service run by the government, it turns out, is more than enough to get you caught.

www.buzzfeed.com...

This came out a month ago:

FBl Admits It Controlled Tor Servers Behind Mass Malware Attack
yro.slashdot.org/story/13/09/14/0122218/fbi-admits-it-controlled-tor-servers-behind-mass-malware-attack
yro.slashdot.org...

The comments on slashdot are interesting!

reply to post by AbleEndangered


Here is how they apparently have been nailing TOR users.

1. Scan Internet traffic. The NSA uses programs like Stormbrew, Fairview, Oakstar, and Blarney. These programs were all categorized as “upstream” data collection programs on previous slides released by Snowden. Through them, the agency brokers deals with major telecoms and taps into the fibreoptic backbone of the Internet. 2. Mark Tor requests. As the NSA monitors the world's Internet traffic, it creates what Schneier refers to as “fingerprints” of requests from Tor users to various servers. It stores these requests in searchable databases like XKeyscore, through which the NSA monitors emails, browsing histories, and Facebook chats, the latter in real time. 3. Sift out marked traffic. The NSA uses automatic sifting programs to separate marked Tor users from the pool of all Internet traffic. As Schneier wrote, “The very feature that makes Tor a powerful anonymity service, and the fact that all Tor users look alike on the Internet, makes it easy to differentiate Tor users from other web users.” 4. Send users to NSA servers. The NSA brokered deals with major telecom companies in order to redirect Tor users to a system of secret servers dubbed FoxAcid. Through these deals, the agency places what it calls Quantum servers at key points along the fibre optic infrastructure of the Internet. These servers pretend to be the legitimate server that the Tor user is trying to access. They then redirect the users to the FoxAcid system.

More information can be found at link.

www.dailydot.com...

damn this scusk cants use tor to hide ever again

I just stumbled across the sponsor page for TOR:

Active Sponsors in 2013:
Broadcasting Board of Governors (2006-2013)
SRI International (2011-2014)
US Department of State Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (2013-2015)
Sida - Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (2010-2013)
National Science Foundation joint with Georgia Tech and Princeton University (2012-2016)
Radio Free Asia (2012-2014)
The Knight Foundation (2012-2013)
An anonymous North American ISP (2009-present)
The Ford Foundation (2013-2014)
An anonymous North American NGO (2008-2013)
More than 4,300 personal donations from individuals like you (2006-present)
Past sponsors
We greatly appreciate the support provided by our past sponsors in keeping the Tor Project progressing through our ambitious goals:

National Science Foundation via Drexel University (2009-2011)
Access Now (2012)
Google (2008-2009)
Google Summer of Code (2007-present)
Human Rights Watch (2007)
Torfox (2009)
Shinjiru Technology (2009-2011)
National Christian Foundation (2010-2012)
NLnet Foundation (2008-2009)
Naval Research Laboratory (2006-2010)
Internews Europe (2006-2008)
Electronic Frontier Foundation (2004-2005)
DARPA and ONR via Naval Research Laboratory (2001-2006)
Cyber-TA project (2006-2008)
Bell Security Solutions Inc (2006)
Omidyar Network Enzyme Grant (2006)
NSF via Rice University (2006-2007)

I am guessing there is more to TOR than meets the eye..

Well, really, you don't even have to be very tech savvy to know that anything that has been made by man can be compromised by man if someone is determined enough and has enough time and money. Since the resources of the US government are pretty much unlimited, I never believed for a minute that TOR was secure. Anyone who has anything to hide would be crazy to use a computer or a phone and believe they can outsmart someone who is looking for them.

TOR might protect you from run of the mill hackers or something but it was always a bad idea to think the government couldn't get in if they wanted to.