Tor’s shadowy reputation will only end if we all use it | Engadget

seasonone@opidea.xyz to Technology@beehaw.org – 357 points –
Tor’s shadowy reputation will only end if we all use it | Engadget
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Connection attempts from the FBI? Could you specify that a bit further?

I was using peerblock and one of the blocklists contained known governmental IP addresses. Those blocked connections began quickly filling the logs.

Spooked the crap outta me. It's been a few years since I did that, so I could have that detail wrong. I know it was for sure one of the three letter acronyms, DOD, FBI, CIA, but they were definitely incoming.

That does not sound plausible to me. Typically, your own computer would be behind a router that is either doing NAT or has a firewall (probably the former). Any incoming traffic would be directed to the router without any chance of reaching your computer. Whatever you saw was either outgoing traffic or incoming traffic in response to connections initiated by your own computer.

Consider this, the Tor software was accepting connections from government IPs.

Regardless of whether it was active intrusion or a significant portion of the Tor network, (at that time) had a number of governmental IP ranges in it, It's enough to dissuade my use, at least without more significant OpSec.

I do understand your point though.