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One of the main purposes that Tor is often touted for is for use by people in oppressive regimes that have different views on human rights than us. This activi

One of the main purposes that Tor is often touted for is for use by people in oppressive regimes that have different views on human rights than us. This activity would very likely be illegal in those regimes. Even in the USA there is a long history of activists engaged in activities that were illegal at the time but morally correct(when viewed in hindsight, since morals shift over time) -- would your comment 'Don't do illegal stuff period?' apply to them as well? What would you suggest Tor be used for?

vbezhenar 10y ago
Oppressive laws might force fair people to use Tor, so it'll help other tor users to stay hidden. What country has laws against Tor, anyway? I never heard anything about it. I know that some countries blocking Tor traffic, but not forbidding it specifically.
Spivak 10y ago
> What would you suggest Tor be used for? Well, ultimately it should be used for general purpose anonymous browsing (i.e not logged in or logged into an pseudo-anonymous identity) since those activities help shield those that truly need the security.
TheSpiceIsLife 10y ago
I don't have the data to know this for certain, but I find it hard to believe that this main purpose of Tor of which you speak is really true. Surely the most numerous users of Tor are Americans and Russians downloading pirated media and porn. Didn't the Tor Project only recently align itself with this purported main purpose and that people then argued it was a stupid move because Tor shouldn't have a politcal agenda as that just draws attention to people who might use it for political purposes.
- Buge 10y ago
  >Surely the most numerous users of Tor are Americans and Russians downloading pirated media and porn. Tor is extremely slow and laggy. It would be excruciating to try to watch a pirated video over Tor. Same with porn. Unless it's significantly illegal, both those activities would be better done over a VPN. As far as I know, no one has been arrested for just downloading pirated content.

vbezhenar 10y ago

Oppressive laws might force fair people to use Tor, so it'll help other tor users to stay hidden. What country has laws against Tor, anyway? I never heard anything about it. I know that some countries blocking Tor traffic, but not forbidding it specifically.

Spivak 10y ago

> What would you suggest Tor be used for? Well, ultimately it should be used for general purpose anonymous browsing (i.e not logged in or logged into an pseudo-anonymous identity) since those activities help shield those that truly need the security.

TheSpiceIsLife 10y ago

I don't have the data to know this for certain, but I find it hard to believe that this main purpose of Tor of which you speak is really true. Surely the most numerous users of Tor are Americans and Russians downloading pirated media and porn. Didn't the Tor Project only recently align itself with this purported main purpose and that people then argued it was a stupid move because Tor shouldn't have a politcal agenda as that just draws attention to people who might use it for political purposes.

Buge 10y ago
>Surely the most numerous users of Tor are Americans and Russians downloading pirated media and porn. Tor is extremely slow and laggy. It would be excruciating to try to watch a pirated video over Tor. Same with porn. Unless it's significantly illegal, both those activities would be better done over a VPN. As far as I know, no one has been arrested for just downloading pirated content.