Professor
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Time passes, something changes. But the essence remains unchanged!
Someone has known all this for a long time, and for someone it will not be superfluous to read ...
1. Complete anonymity does not exist in nature!
To begin with, we should understand that we do not need "complete anonymity". It is enough to confuse the digital fingerprint so that untangling it is unprofitable, and the effort and time spent are not worth the result. To create such a level, no special knowledge or skills are required, it is enough to have a head on your shoulders and read this FAQ in full.
2. Why do we need all this?
Most "cybercriminals" were not identified thanks to traces left on the network.
It will be very sad if you are not identified hot on the trail, your loved ones do not turn you in, and so on, but are stupidly caught because of your laziness and disregard for elementary security principles.
You can hide in a bunker with a laptop and a router, get a bunch of VPN services, but what is the point of security if you order pizza from the same laptop?
3. I am not familiar with the basics of programming, I do not understand anything about it and I do not want to understand it at all! What to do to avoid getting busted?
First, let's define your activities:
1) I'm an ordinary user, I like to joke about moms/dads/grandfathers/grandmothers without any illegal actions. I sit on ******* in the evenings after I do my homework and click on the buttons.
- They won't find you, because nobody needs you. You can take off your tin foil helmet.
2) There are intentions of some illegal activity in the future. For example - working in a shop in an online position.
- Buy a second-hand laptop, preferably used, a second-hand USB modem or router
- Install Tails on a flash drive (you can find a huge amount of materials on this topic in the public domain)
- Pump up the "Security settings..." settings of Tor Browser to the maximum
- Use a password manager to store and generate complex passwords
- Use OTR or GPG message encryption (for example, in Jabber)
- Give up social networks and do not transfer any personal data through the above-mentioned devices
This will be quite enough.
4. What is Tails and how to eat it?
Tailsis a pre-configured operating system created to ensure privacy and anonymity. With its help, all traffic is directed through the Tor network.
It leaves no traces on the device from which it is used, does not store any data in itself and after each reboot returns to its original form, after shutdown the RAM is erased. A very convenient thing.
You won't have to:
- suffer with TrueCrypt, because the encrypted "Persistent" section is created on it in a couple of clicks
- install Tor Browser, because it is already installed with even greater protection, we have pumped it up to the maximum
- install programs for storing passwords, transferring files, deleting metadata, working with cryptocurrency, encrypting files and messages, software for editing photos/videos/audio files
Because all this is already installed and ready for use!
Download, write to a flash drive (at least 2 GB), boot from it, install on a new flash drive (from 8 GB), boot from a new flash drive, activate Persistent.
Mission Complete! The OS is ready for use!
5. What characteristics should a computer have for Tails and what else is needed?
I strongly recommend buying a separate laptop that will not be associated with your personality!
What you need for Tails:
- RAM from 4 GB. It can run on 2 GB, but there may be slowdowns.
- 1 USB 3.0 port, for the speed of working from a flash drive
- only a 64-bit processor (x86-64), it is difficult to recommend a specific model.
Requirements for the flash drive:
- Not SanDisk, PNY, Aegis
- USB 3.0
- necessarily on MLC chips, this will provide high survivability
- from 8 GB (usually the larger the volume, the higher the speed)
I recommend buying 2 flash drives at once. Make one of them a backup, also install Tails on it and copy all important data to it from time to time, in case one of them fails.
6. What about instant messengers? Skype, WhatsАpp, Viber, Telegram, do they also have encryption?
They cannot be used for the following reasons:
- Central server. You cannot create your own.
- Closed source code. What these programs actually do and where they drain everything is unknown.
- Encryption not using open proven algorithms (GPG / OTR), but using their own - they will decrypt you when needed.
- Binding to a SIM card or device.
7. Why not just chat in a random online chat and/or communicate in pre-set words that others will not understand?
Hiding the subject of the conversation is not enough, since the fact of the conversation itself remains: its parties/time/place/what devices it took place from and other data that will remain on the server. And you can’t trust the encryption of some "online chats".
8. What messenger can I use then?
Those that work on the jabber protocol (XMPP), with open source. They are time-tested and support encryption of client-client correspondence GPG and/or OTR (that is, no one else will see it, not even the server owners):
- Psi+ (GPG, OTR) a refined Psi with additional features
- Pidgin (OTR) an old proven client, built into Tails
For Android:
- Conversations (GPG, OTR)
- Xabber (OTR)
9. What is the difference between OTR and GPG encryption, if in simple terms?
In simple terms: OTR requires the other party to be online, but provides deniability (after the conversation, the keys are destroyed and messages can no longer be decrypted, even if the keys were taken from both parties).
GPG is much older, more reliable and has more extensive functionality (you can encrypt files, sign messages, verify signatures), keep the keys in an encrypted section, have complex passwords and make backups and there will be no problems.
10. How to store files and do you need to encrypt them?
Of course, you can encrypt your hard drive with TrueCrypt, but will you be able to quickly destroy it if necessary? Is it easy to hide it? Therefore, it is more practical to use an easily destructible medium. For example, on a flash drive with Tails in the Persistent section (this is a separate folder in which the contents are encrypted instantly).
11. Where to upload photos / videos / audio files?
To foreign hostings and better in .onion, delete metadata from files before uploading.
12. How to delete metadata?
You can use the MAT program.
13. How to safely send\receive photos, videos, audio files to your interlocutor? Can't you do it via jabber?
With OnionShare - a secure file sharing service in Tor.
You can't send files directly via jabber, only via third-party servers, it's not safe and you shouldn't do that.
14. What about communication via fake phones with fake SIM cards? A proven method!
Pay attention to point 7. Your location, voice, fact of communication, subject of communication remain, there is no encryption.
15. What about Tor Browser?
1) Isn't it a US development and all that?
- Yes, just like processors, RAM and everything else. But Tor has an open source code and has passed some time testing.
2) Can JS (JavaScript) scripts lead to deanon if they are allowed?
- Yes, enabled JS directly leads to identification of your device.
3) What does my provider see when I use Tor?
- Only the fact of using Tor. How exactly you use it: what sites you visit, what messengers you use, correspondence, etc. - none of this is visible.
The fact that you use not just Tor, but Tails, the provider can also see.
4) What are the rules for using Tor that need to be followed?
- You should not accept an unsigned certificate (which may be an exit node certificate)
- It is advisable to exclude the IP addresses of CIS countries and Russia from the chain
- In order not to leave your correspondence on the servers, you should use client-client encryption (OTR\GPG)
- Do not download torrents through Tor, it is advisable not to download anything at all
- Use https:// versions of sites
- Have complex and different passwords everywhere
- Everything else that is described in this FAQ. I will not repeat myself
16. What about the MAC address of the device? What to do?
The Wi-Fi module, the laptop network card, as well as the router or modem have MAC addresses.
Websites do NOT see your MAC address. But your provider and neighboring devices (other people's routers and Wi-Fi points) do see them and leak this information, for example, to Google / Yandex to determine the location. Solution: turn off the Wi-Fi modules and connect to the router via an Ethernet cable.
Tails automatically changes the MAC addresses of your Wi-Fi module and laptop network card every time it starts.
17. Do you need a VPN in conjunction with Tor? Isn't Tor alone enough?
Tor is experimental software that can potentially contain vulnerabilities, although it is constantly updated. In addition, VPN hides the very fact of using Tor from the provider, which is very important. Well, double protection has never been superfluous.
18. Which VPN service is better to choose?
A good VPN service must meet several criteria:
- the servers and the company itself are not located in Russia or the USA
- support work via OpenVPN (only configuration files are downloaded, and no program is installed from the service)
- payment using cryptocurrency
This is only part of the information that may be useful to you for setting up anonymity.
If you don’t want to bother with all this, then just contact an information security specialist. They can be found on many darknet sites.
Well, as always, I will say in conclusion - take care of yourself!
Someone has known all this for a long time, and for someone it will not be superfluous to read ...
1. Complete anonymity does not exist in nature!
To begin with, we should understand that we do not need "complete anonymity". It is enough to confuse the digital fingerprint so that untangling it is unprofitable, and the effort and time spent are not worth the result. To create such a level, no special knowledge or skills are required, it is enough to have a head on your shoulders and read this FAQ in full.
2. Why do we need all this?
Most "cybercriminals" were not identified thanks to traces left on the network.
It will be very sad if you are not identified hot on the trail, your loved ones do not turn you in, and so on, but are stupidly caught because of your laziness and disregard for elementary security principles.
You can hide in a bunker with a laptop and a router, get a bunch of VPN services, but what is the point of security if you order pizza from the same laptop?
3. I am not familiar with the basics of programming, I do not understand anything about it and I do not want to understand it at all! What to do to avoid getting busted?
First, let's define your activities:
1) I'm an ordinary user, I like to joke about moms/dads/grandfathers/grandmothers without any illegal actions. I sit on ******* in the evenings after I do my homework and click on the buttons.
- They won't find you, because nobody needs you. You can take off your tin foil helmet.
2) There are intentions of some illegal activity in the future. For example - working in a shop in an online position.
- Buy a second-hand laptop, preferably used, a second-hand USB modem or router
- Install Tails on a flash drive (you can find a huge amount of materials on this topic in the public domain)
- Pump up the "Security settings..." settings of Tor Browser to the maximum
- Use a password manager to store and generate complex passwords
- Use OTR or GPG message encryption (for example, in Jabber)
- Give up social networks and do not transfer any personal data through the above-mentioned devices
This will be quite enough.
4. What is Tails and how to eat it?
Tailsis a pre-configured operating system created to ensure privacy and anonymity. With its help, all traffic is directed through the Tor network.
It leaves no traces on the device from which it is used, does not store any data in itself and after each reboot returns to its original form, after shutdown the RAM is erased. A very convenient thing.
You won't have to:
- suffer with TrueCrypt, because the encrypted "Persistent" section is created on it in a couple of clicks
- install Tor Browser, because it is already installed with even greater protection, we have pumped it up to the maximum
- install programs for storing passwords, transferring files, deleting metadata, working with cryptocurrency, encrypting files and messages, software for editing photos/videos/audio files
Because all this is already installed and ready for use!
Download, write to a flash drive (at least 2 GB), boot from it, install on a new flash drive (from 8 GB), boot from a new flash drive, activate Persistent.
Mission Complete! The OS is ready for use!
5. What characteristics should a computer have for Tails and what else is needed?
I strongly recommend buying a separate laptop that will not be associated with your personality!
What you need for Tails:
- RAM from 4 GB. It can run on 2 GB, but there may be slowdowns.
- 1 USB 3.0 port, for the speed of working from a flash drive
- only a 64-bit processor (x86-64), it is difficult to recommend a specific model.
Requirements for the flash drive:
- Not SanDisk, PNY, Aegis
- USB 3.0
- necessarily on MLC chips, this will provide high survivability
- from 8 GB (usually the larger the volume, the higher the speed)
I recommend buying 2 flash drives at once. Make one of them a backup, also install Tails on it and copy all important data to it from time to time, in case one of them fails.
6. What about instant messengers? Skype, WhatsАpp, Viber, Telegram, do they also have encryption?
They cannot be used for the following reasons:
- Central server. You cannot create your own.
- Closed source code. What these programs actually do and where they drain everything is unknown.
- Encryption not using open proven algorithms (GPG / OTR), but using their own - they will decrypt you when needed.
- Binding to a SIM card or device.
7. Why not just chat in a random online chat and/or communicate in pre-set words that others will not understand?
Hiding the subject of the conversation is not enough, since the fact of the conversation itself remains: its parties/time/place/what devices it took place from and other data that will remain on the server. And you can’t trust the encryption of some "online chats".
8. What messenger can I use then?
Those that work on the jabber protocol (XMPP), with open source. They are time-tested and support encryption of client-client correspondence GPG and/or OTR (that is, no one else will see it, not even the server owners):
- Psi+ (GPG, OTR) a refined Psi with additional features
- Pidgin (OTR) an old proven client, built into Tails
For Android:
- Conversations (GPG, OTR)
- Xabber (OTR)
9. What is the difference between OTR and GPG encryption, if in simple terms?
In simple terms: OTR requires the other party to be online, but provides deniability (after the conversation, the keys are destroyed and messages can no longer be decrypted, even if the keys were taken from both parties).
GPG is much older, more reliable and has more extensive functionality (you can encrypt files, sign messages, verify signatures), keep the keys in an encrypted section, have complex passwords and make backups and there will be no problems.
10. How to store files and do you need to encrypt them?
Of course, you can encrypt your hard drive with TrueCrypt, but will you be able to quickly destroy it if necessary? Is it easy to hide it? Therefore, it is more practical to use an easily destructible medium. For example, on a flash drive with Tails in the Persistent section (this is a separate folder in which the contents are encrypted instantly).
11. Where to upload photos / videos / audio files?
To foreign hostings and better in .onion, delete metadata from files before uploading.
12. How to delete metadata?
You can use the MAT program.
13. How to safely send\receive photos, videos, audio files to your interlocutor? Can't you do it via jabber?
With OnionShare - a secure file sharing service in Tor.
You can't send files directly via jabber, only via third-party servers, it's not safe and you shouldn't do that.
14. What about communication via fake phones with fake SIM cards? A proven method!
Pay attention to point 7. Your location, voice, fact of communication, subject of communication remain, there is no encryption.
15. What about Tor Browser?
1) Isn't it a US development and all that?
- Yes, just like processors, RAM and everything else. But Tor has an open source code and has passed some time testing.
2) Can JS (JavaScript) scripts lead to deanon if they are allowed?
- Yes, enabled JS directly leads to identification of your device.
3) What does my provider see when I use Tor?
- Only the fact of using Tor. How exactly you use it: what sites you visit, what messengers you use, correspondence, etc. - none of this is visible.
The fact that you use not just Tor, but Tails, the provider can also see.
4) What are the rules for using Tor that need to be followed?
- You should not accept an unsigned certificate (which may be an exit node certificate)
- It is advisable to exclude the IP addresses of CIS countries and Russia from the chain
- In order not to leave your correspondence on the servers, you should use client-client encryption (OTR\GPG)
- Do not download torrents through Tor, it is advisable not to download anything at all
- Use https:// versions of sites
- Have complex and different passwords everywhere
- Everything else that is described in this FAQ. I will not repeat myself
16. What about the MAC address of the device? What to do?
The Wi-Fi module, the laptop network card, as well as the router or modem have MAC addresses.
Websites do NOT see your MAC address. But your provider and neighboring devices (other people's routers and Wi-Fi points) do see them and leak this information, for example, to Google / Yandex to determine the location. Solution: turn off the Wi-Fi modules and connect to the router via an Ethernet cable.
Tails automatically changes the MAC addresses of your Wi-Fi module and laptop network card every time it starts.
17. Do you need a VPN in conjunction with Tor? Isn't Tor alone enough?
Tor is experimental software that can potentially contain vulnerabilities, although it is constantly updated. In addition, VPN hides the very fact of using Tor from the provider, which is very important. Well, double protection has never been superfluous.
18. Which VPN service is better to choose?
A good VPN service must meet several criteria:
- the servers and the company itself are not located in Russia or the USA
- support work via OpenVPN (only configuration files are downloaded, and no program is installed from the service)
- payment using cryptocurrency
This is only part of the information that may be useful to you for setting up anonymity.
If you don’t want to bother with all this, then just contact an information security specialist. They can be found on many darknet sites.
Well, as always, I will say in conclusion - take care of yourself!
