A better metaphor would be that Tor and VPNs are like wearing a mask in public. It's obvious that you're trying to be anonymous, but you're still wearing a mask, so no one knows who you are.

You may be denied entry to certain establishments, but some of the bouncers don't block all masks and if you're persistent with changing your mask (Tor or VPN exit node), there's a good chance you'll get in. CTRL+SHIFT+L works on Tor Browser to change your circuit. The linked article blocks Tor, but after pressing CTRL+SHIFT+L a few times, I was able to read it.

For the sites that don't let me view them via Tor, I can install FoxyProxy and try some IPs from the free public lists. Lots of sites that block Tor don't block these IPs, although it's a bit of a pain. Another option is to load an archived version of the site on archive.org or archive.md (or .is or the various different TLDs it uses).

As for HN - it sometimes gives a "Sorry." if you try to access a certain comment directly, but after a few tries it works. This account was created over Tor and I've only accessed it through Tor. I think my first comment was dead and someone vouched for it, but now my comments appear instantly.

I've heard that banking sites don't work over Tor, but I haven't had a need to use Tor for banking, as the bank already knows who I am pretty well.

Most of the big social media sites don't allow Tor, but if I wanted to create a fake account, I'd most likely buy a residential proxy.

So it's not that bad, considering what you get from Tor (and with some VPNs, depending on your threat model) - no tracking, anonymity and so on.

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speedgoose 9 hours ago | parent | next [-]

To continue on the analogy, many people using a VPN wear a mask but they also keep the same unique combination of clothes that they were wearing a few minutes earlier without a mask.

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rynn 9 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Do you use Tor for everything? How do you deal with the latency?

	▲	bgbntty2 8 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Pretty much for everything, except for things that are already tied to my real world identity like email and a few sites that know who I am. It accomplishes 2 things: * I'm not tracked as much. Less data points for the companies to gobble up. * More Tor users lead to better anonymity for everyone as it's easier to blend in - you won't be the only one wearing a mask at the club every weekend. I got used to the latency. It's not that bad. Some sites load instantly, others take 1-2 seconds. A few take a while. Sites from one regional hosting provider in my country just don't load at all. I get "Server not found". I'm not sure how that works - are they blackholing an ASN or using something else with BGP? The main issue for me is not the latency, though, but the CAPTCHAs and 403's (HTTP Forbidden). If I were to search for a recipe, for example, I'd open 5-10 of the results in new tabs (with the middle mouse button; idk why people use CTRL+click), then close the ones with "Attention Required" or "Forbidden" so I'm left with 3-5 usable sites. That way I always have something to read. When I open a few sites one after the other, at least one will usually load instantly. I haven't used Tor without Whonix on Qubes OS for a while, so I'm not sure if the latency is different on a standard OS with just Tor Browser installed. My workflow is that I use disposable VMs for different things I do. Right now I have a VM with HN and a few links I've opened from it and another VM with other research I started earlier today that I plan on finishing a bit later. When I'm done with my HN session, I'll close this VM, which will destroy it. For me this compartmentalization is good not only for security and privacy, but for productivity, as well.