Silk Road forums
Discussion => Off topic => Topic started by: Wing Hat on December 20, 2012, 10:27 pm
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I have to start by apologizing in advance for the noobiness that I'm going to most likely emit from my first few weeks here. I read about a dozen different threads before I went ahead and registered, but even then I just know it's going to be unavoidable for me to come off looking like a bumbling idiot. So here goes nothing.
I'm not a stranger to "illegal" activities, (a little crystal, a LOT of weed) but the whole internet anonymity thing is definitely out of my realm. I'm semi-mediocre at being a tech savvy person (mostly pirating) but my ignorance on the ins and outs of the world of computers and ips and mac addresses give me a shit load of anxiety. I'll just go ahead and get my first stupid comment out by admitting that just registering here makes the little gremlin inside my head scream at me that the feds are going to be dropping out of my ceiling vents at any moment. So with that thought, here comes the question.......
By JUST using my Tor browser, that's REALLY all I have to do to remain anonymous? Really? No traffic is documented through my router or anything? No flags or alarms are being set off at my ISP's office by my laptop that automatically dispatches a band of "rape ninjas" to my house? I guess you can chalk it up to my paranoia, but it just feels too easy that all I had to do was download Tor and wallah. I'm magically invisible??? I mean, when I download music and movies I just use firefox to get to tpb, then I download with utorrent. Oh, and I start peerblock before I open up Firefox. However I have a sneaky feeling that a few of you are going to be doing some pretty serious facepalms after reading that. I just KNOW that there's probably like 6 or 50 things I should be doing differently, but I guess I gotta learn from somewhere.
Anyway, there's still a small handful of other things that I should be educated on like proxy connections, hacking wifi & emails, or free satellite cable or cell phone service. And don't even get me started on Bitcoin. ??? :o But we'll just start with "how to be safe on the net" first and go at this in baby steps. Lol!
Well I thank all of you in advance for any help or advice you can give me. I also hope the hazing isn't too vicious either. I think my psyche is already 1 foot in the grave from just getting up the courage to come in here, so it really wouldn't take much more to go ahead and finish me off. So please........be gentle. ;D
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Don't worry friend, there's so much involved with really having a good grasp on exactly what's going on with SR (Tor, Bitcoins, cryptography, how the mail system works -- I mean it's a whole range of subjects you have to know better than most would ever bother).
So yeah, basically... as long as you aren't selling, they can't find you. To be more accurate though, they won't bother trying to find you -- there are attacks against the Tor network that can reveal some statistical patterns and narrow down suspects that way, but to my knowledge, they've only ever succeeded in controlled environments (not the real internet where there's stuff going every which way). You're fine :)
Note well though that it IS DOCUMENTED, and it IS OBVIOUS YOU'RE USING Tor. What can't be decyphered is what you're doing with it.
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Shit, I forgot... you don't want to torrent through Tor. 1) it cripples the network at that level of traffic. 2) it's actually worse than the normal way... I think... but can't remember why. It's not anonymous though, is the point. Just don't bother using Tor for it.
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Holy shit that was a fast response. LOL! I sincerely appreciate the warm welcome.
Yeah, I tried going to tpb through Tor, but it wasn't working. NOW I see why. (slaps forehead)
So you'd say my "setup" is a-o-k in your opinion? Firefox/tpb/utorrent/peerblock ???
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Er, that's a longer answer, and your phrasing makes me concerned that I may have glossed over important details... so the long version:
The tor browser is just a modified, specially configured version of Firefox. The tor browser does NOTHING to protect your anonymity, EXCEPT that it's configured specifically to work 100% anonymously through Tor. Tor is the program that actually makes your activity (more or less) impossible to decipher. The browser only makes sure it doesn't do stuff that fucks up what Tor is trying to do in the first place (for example, some programs even though you've configured them to go through the Tor proxy on your computer, will still make a DNS query to find the IP address of the sites you visit -- which means Tor can't protect you when it's going AROUND Tor and announcing your destinations on its own w/o telling you).
Vidalia is the graphical component that you interact with. It isn't Tor either, but it provides a GUI to control your Tor program through.
And no, you aren't safe torrenting with peerblock. Safer, maybe... but not safe. They can still log you & sue you.
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Gotchya.
Wow, this definitely proves I have a lot to learn. From what you're telling me, it really seems that there's a lot of fine tuning in one's programs to increase the functionality and anonymity of the entire process.
In your opinion is there a "perfect system" as far as pirating or buying from the SR marketplace? I would think in my head that the first "perfect" step would be to always use a public wi-fi. Wouldn't you say?
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No, actually, I wouldn't. Recently a disgruntled employee was caught blackmailing his former employer. Or something like that, the details escape me right now... but he did everything right. Absolutely everything. Tor, anonymous email, on and on and on he got it all right -- then he went to McDonald's to use their public wifi to respond to something. He bought a shake while he was there (or a hamburger, I don't remember what). He paid with his credit card.
That was enough. They found him, they arrested him, he's gone now for a long time. It's tricky, this business. Very tricky. Never let yourself believe it's ever completely safe.
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That is fucking insane. So just because he was there, that was enough to charge him? Did they confiscate the laptop a.k.a. - the smoking gun? I would think they would've needed more evidence than that to really get him. Wow,
I'm not sure now if I feel better or worse. LOL!
So in the end, everyone that buys "goodies" from the SL marketplace are doing it with the acceptance that they could really get their shit rocked? There's never really a full level of comfort, is there?
What about email hacking? I see books and programs over at the marketplace and it astounds me that something so big could be so seemingly easy to get.......
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SR (not SL) :) But basically... no. There's never a full level of comfort. I get incredibly nervous every single time I have an order on the way and get it. But the fun of knowing drugs are on their way and will be here soon... is totally like Christmas morning at the same time. Very awkward, really, heh...
Some people are totally comfortable doing it. I don't think they actually understand the repercussions of getting caught. With some of the drugs around, your life is ruined. Period. Even after you get out. No one will hire you, can't get a good job, nobody will give you a second chance... I mean that's it, your chance for a good life fucking gone. All because you just wanted to hurt yourself a little bit. Just not right...
Word of advice: lots of people here don't take kindly to anything that harms another person. We're very pro-drug. We're very anti-meanness. So hacking... well... you may find the listings, but they're kind of controversial if they're for vicious uses only. Also not officially sanctioned.
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There are no stupid questions. Always better to ask if your unsure. Happy "'Roadin" bud. :)
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Wow. This definitely turned out to be way of a better first session than I had thought in my mind.
A big thanks to both of you. I gotta turn in for the day, but I appreciate the kind words and I look forward to lots more conversations. :)
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"I came for the drugs. I stayed for the revolution." :)