[tor-relays] Is there a reason for all exit nodes being public?

[Dave Warren]

On 2016-12-07 05:41, Rana wrote:
>>>> By the way, I just checked, Gmail works without problems over Tor (both Web and IMAPS).
>>> Using Gmail over Tor when they already know who you are is self-defeating. Try to register an anonymous Gmail account using Tor.
>
>> Doable. They require a phone number for verification, but that's the same with and without Tor. Besides, if you want an anonymous email, use _anything but Gmail_, eg. ProtonMail.
>
> Providing you phone number during registration = registration is not anonymous, so anonymous registration of a Gmail account using Tor is NOT doable.

This depends on your country. In some countries you can purchase a SIM 
and activate service using only cash. If your threat model includes 
includes an adversary that could obtain phone company records, you 
should not reuse the phone or SIM for any other purpose.

Obviously not all countries allow for this approach.


> Last time I tried, this did not work. I provided the SMS number in a Tor registration attempt and Gmail said we cannot register you "at this time", without even trying to send me an SMS.
>
> Protonmail is exactly the same thing, if you want to register a free account you need to provide your phone number. You can register "anonymously" in ProtonMail only for paid account, and even if you are willing to pay for anonymity, you need to pay in bitcoin which ultimately discloses you identity - so again, not anonymous.

As someone who previously ran a small freemail service, I can tell you 
that it's extremely difficult to block abusers from signing up without 
also blocking legitimate users. I gave up trying.

If you can acquire an untrackable prepaid credit card (again, something 
that can be done using only cash here, but perhaps not everywhere), you 
may be able to find a VoIP service which can be used for this purpose.

I have registered both Gmail and Outlook.com accounts at a VoIP SMS 
phone number, although I had to register a few phone numbers in 
different area codes before I found one that would work.

It's a tough problem to solve, I will admit.


On 2016-12-07 04:15, Rana wrote:
> Using Gmail over Tor when they already know who you are is self-defeating. Try to register an anonymous Gmail account using Tor.

Gmail might know who I am, but my connectivity provider doesn't and I 
might not want them to know I'm using Gmail.