[tor-talk] William was raided for running a Tor exit node. Please help if you can.

[bvvq]

On 1/12/2012 9:02 AM, Naslund, Steve wrote:
> OK, there must be a lot more paranoid people out there than I thought
> there were.  I personally don't have a "runaway kit" stashed away.  I
> will get right on that. So when that "mouth breather cop" won't believe
> you are innocent, your answer is to grab your stuff and go on the lamb
> for awhile?  I am sure he will let you out to go to the bank, get your
> stuff, and leave town.  I think you have seen way to many movies.
>

I agree the scenario you described is absurd, but I don't agree it's 
absurd to be paranoid or practical when your activities (like running an 
exit node) may result in you being raided.

I was raided in 2010 because of false allegations made by a cranky 
former employer. It was a very unpleasant experience and it's the reason 
why I run relays instead of exit nodes. The raid resulted in the seizure 
of all "electronic devices with storage capabilities" that were at my 
personal residence, in my vehicle, and on my person; it didn't include 
my hosted servers or offsite backups.

Unfortunately, this meant that my mobile phone (work and personal use), 
tablet (personal use), and laptop (work use) were seized because they 
were on me when the raid occurred. Fortunately, I'm paranoid/practical 
and had a mobile phone, laptop, and recent backups stored at my parents' 
house. Having these backups in place required a little effort and 
upfront cost, but it allowed me to return to work and studies with 
minimal disruption.