There are many different browser extensions that many use to hide IP addresses and protect anonymity.

Among them:

other.

Are all these popular proxies and VPN extensions reliable and is the security level comparable to Tor ?

Tor works relatively slowly, but in my opinion, it is a less reliable means for anonymity. Various extensions work faster and, for example, watching a video is more comfortable than in Tor. And in some extensions, it is not at all noticeable that a proxy is used. The ease and speed of work extensions alarming. There is a feeling that in terms of security, all these extensions leave much to be desired, and they should not be considered as a reliable service to ensure anonymity.

Closed due to the fact that it is necessary to reformulate the question so that it was possible to give an objectively correct answer by the participants Visman , cheops , aleksandr barakin , Kromster , Kirill Stoianov Sep 22, '16 at 7:42 .

The question gives rise to endless debates and discussions based not on knowledge, but on opinions. To get an answer, rephrase your question so that it can be given an unambiguously correct answer, or delete the question altogether. If the question can be reformulated according to the rules set out in the certificate , edit it .

  • These extensions and Tor solve different problems. Completely different. For anonymity, you must use VPN, Tor and a non-fingerprint browser at the same time. Yes, and VPN + Tor in a good way should be connected at the network level, and not at the application level. - Pavel Mayorov
  • one
    In other words, these extensions for the browser in terms of anonymity - bullshit. - Pavel Mayorov

1 answer 1

Tor is quite a complicated project. Personally, I strongly doubt that any addition to the browser will be comparable to it. If you compare the level of Tor with something, then with similar projects. For example - I2P (although they have different goals). The methods used by Tor mean a significant number of nodes in the global network that are used to provide secure communication. Therefore, the security of other extensions will be comparable only when using a comparable number of servers.

To begin at least with the fact that if the extension uses a connection to servers that are under the control of any organization (even worse - if they are all in the same country), then you should not trust such a system. Although here, of course, everything relates to what level of security you need. If you just want the young hacker from the next door to not be able to decipher the data sent to the network by you or simply hide your IP from the site administration - that’s enough.

Tor is not just encrypting and hiding IP. Why its encryption is rather complicated and why the network is slow - you can read here . In short - when sending data, Tor encrypts them several times and sends them through a chain, not by a single server, (by default, if the memory doesn’t change, 3 nodes). Each of them removes one layer of encryption and reads where to send the packet further. That is, the initial sender and the final recipient are not known to all participants in the chain. When receiving a response from the server, the data also passes through several nodes, each of which adds an encryption layer. And every 10 minutes (again - if the memory does not fail), this chain changes.

  • It is possible, in principle, to send each stream to a separate nym, if you open SIGNAL NEWNYM - Redr01d pm on several ports