UM Comparison of Tor Browser IP Addresses to Regular Web Browser Essay

Many people use the web and think that they are anonymous. Information about your DNS, IP address and other data can be retrieved, so you are not anonymous. The Tor browser routes your traffic through a network and your IP reported to any source could be anywhere on the planet. This affords you better anonymous browsing. 

Directions

• Read and execute the instructions for Hands-on Project 2 starting on page 213. 
• Write a paper describing your experience and project results. Describe challenges you encountered.
• Paste the screenshots into your paper. For each screenshot, describe in DETAIL what is taking place.

It is a common misconception that HTTPS provides anonymous web browsing. This is not the case. A secured HTTPS connection can ensure confidentiality (what you’re sending can’t be read by others) and authentication (the website you’re visiting is really who they say they are). However, it does not provide anonymity. Eavesdroppers cannot see what you are sending, but they can see that you are sending something to that website.

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Onion routing can provide anonymity via an encrypted network of “relay” servers. Computers around the world pass your fully encrypted traffic. The intermediary relay servers do not know the entire path of the onion network. Requests that come from you appear to originate from around the world. You have complete anonymity. It’s still a good idea to use a secured end-to-end HTTPS connection because the connection between the last relay server and the site you are visiting is not encrypted.

1. Open a web browser.
2. Go to www.google.com.
3. Search for “my IP address.”
4. Press Enter.
5. Click on the first result.
6. Take a screenshot showing your IP address.
7. Go to www.TorProject.org.
8. Click Download Tor Browser.
9. Click on the link for Windows 10 under Tor Browser Bundle.
10. Save the file in your download folder.
11. Browse to your download folder.
12. Right-click the Tor executable and select “run as administrator.”
13. Complete the installation process and start the Tor Browser. (If the Tor browser doesn’t automatically start, you can search for “Tor Browser” in the Windows Search menu.)
14.  Within the web browser, go to www.Google.com.
15. Search for “my IP address.”
16. Click on the first result. (If you get a warning about an “Untrusted” connection, just click I Understand the Risks, Add Exception, and Confirm Security Exception.)
17.  Take a screenshot showing the new IP address. (This is someone else’s IP address.)
18.  Start Microsoft Edge. (Arrange the windows so that the Tor browser and Microsoft Edge are both visible on your desktop.)
19.  Search for “my IP address.”
20.  Click on the first result.
21.  Take a screenshot of your desktop (Ctrl-PrintScreen) showing the IP address results in both web browsers. (Use the results from the same website. Each browser should show a different IP address.)