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Tor Tests Undetectably Encrypted Connections In Iran

Posted by timothy on from the great-song-from-flock-of-seagulls dept.

Sparrowvsrevolution writes "Ahead of the anniversary of Iran's revolution, the country's government has locked down its already-censored Internet, blocking access to many services and in some cases cutting off all encrypted traffic on the Web of the kind used by secure email, social networking and banking sites. In response, the information-freedom-focused Tor Project is testing a new tool it's calling 'obfsproxy,' or obfuscated proxy, which aims to make SSL or TLS traffic appear to be unencrypted traffic like HTTP or instant messaging data. While the tool currently only disguises SSL as the SOCKS protocol, in future versions it will aim to disguise encrypted traffic as any protocol the user chooses. Tor executive director Andrew Lewman says the idea is to 'make your Ferrari look like a Toyota by putting an actual Toyota shell over the Ferrari.'" Reader bonch adds: "A thread on Hacker News provides first-hand accounts as well as workarounds."

6 of 157 comments (clear)

  1. Sounds like a tool for P I R A T E S !! by elrous0 · · Score: 5, Funny

    The MPAA has already called in the FBI, CIA, NSA, and a cadre of hired Senators to put a stop to this illegal piracy-facilitating tool--which, if it's not stopped, will cost millions of American jobs and perhaps collapse the entire economy. Our children's futures are at stake here, people!!!

    --
    SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    1. Re:Sounds like a tool for P I R A T E S !! by rathaven · · Score: 5, Funny

      Not to mention their access to porn...

    2. Re:Sounds like a tool for P I R A T E S !! by MightyYar · · Score: 5, Funny

      Hi there! 48
      All is well in the Islamic Republic! 65
      Our glorious leader has won another election! 6c
      Praise Allah! 70

      --
      W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
    3. Re:Sounds like a tool for P I R A T E S !! by Luckyo · · Score: 3, Funny

      Then look at their imaginary size (our yearly piracy losses are bigger then world's GDP says report given to congress!), then look at modern economy being about imaginary values rather then real values (stock market, derivatives, futures...).

      Then get a big bottle of your favourite alcohol and drown the sorrow.

  2. Disguise encrypted as unencrypted? by Arancaytar · · Score: 4, Funny

    How do you hide something unreadable within something readable? ... damn, you're going to make me RTFA, aren't you? :P

  3. Re:The root of the problem by John3 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Write code that messes with their technology, perhaps something that might wreak havoc on centrifuges or other industrial machinery?

    --
    "We make our world significant by the courage of our questions and by the depth of our answers." Carl Sagan