New guide on anonymity

• Why do you need anonymity
  • Many HRDs rely on anonymity tools to avoid retaliation
  • Whistleblowers
  • Activists who need to do illegal activities to obtain a change in laws they consider unfair
  • Journalist sources

*“Strong encryption and anonymity are fundamental for the protection of human rights in the digital age and are critical to individuals who face persecution because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Anonymity has been a crucial tool for women and sexual minorities for self-expression, connecting, and mobilizing and the use of anonymity online supports the most vulnerable groups.” Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, David Kaye, to the U.N. General Assembly, 22 May 2015

• What anonymity is and isn't

  • Anonymity = your online activities cannot be traced back to you
  • Anonymity is not about using a different name, and it is not about using an app that changes your IP address: you need to be sure that nobody can connect your IP address with what the activities that you don't want to show your identity for. So you need to check that:
    • The tool that offers anonymization is not keeping logs about your connections or IP address
    • Your ISP can only see your connections to the anonymization network
    • Your IP is not showed to the websites or services you connect to
    • No other credentials are connected to your real identities or to your IP
    • Your metadata cannot be mapped so as to trace back your activities to you

• How to achieve anonymity

1. Create an alternate identity and make sure nobody can connect it to you - read the guide on creating and protecting multiple identities

2. Tools to achieve online anonymity

   • Tor Browser (Onion Browser for iOS) - to browse the web
   • Onionshare - to share documents
   • Communicate anonymously - to do so, you need to create account anonymously to start with (see guide on creating and protecting multiple identities)
   • Anonymize all your connections:
     • Tails
     • Orbot on Android
     • Whonix (also on Qubes)
     • SecureDrop and Globaleaks

3. What you should avoid doing when using Tor

   • Control what information you provide through web forms
   • Don't share files with metadata, such as date, time, location, and device information
   • Don't use the same Tor circuit or Tails session for more than one purpose at a time
   • Don't connect through untrusted devices that could be infected with malware
   • Don't torrent over Tor
   • Don't enable or install browser plugins
   • Use HTTPS versions of websites
   • Don't open documents downloaded through Tor while online

4. If Tor doesn't work:

   • If Tor can't be reached, you can use bridges or Snowflake
     • Connect to Tor from China https://support.torproject.org/censorship/#censorship_connecting-from-china
     • Connect to Tor from Russia https://support.torproject.org/censorship/connecting-from-russia/
   • If some websites don't work on Tor, you can try a very trusted VPN - but check for DNS leaks!

[Advanced] If Tor really doesn't work for you, you can use some P2P tools like CeNo or I2P