Monthly Archives: August 2015

7th Circuit Court: Illegal Immigrants Have Second …

Posted: August 29, 2015 at 2:46 pm

In a wordillegal immigrants have Second Amendment rights too.

The case was titled United States v. Meza-Rodriguez, and the decision was handed down on August 20.

The Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel reports that the decision was written by Judge Diane Wood for a panel that included Judges Frank Easterbrook and Joel Flaum.

As for the background to the case, Wood explained that Mariano Meza-Rodriguez, a citizen of Mexico, was arrested in August 2013 [and found to be] carrying a .22 caliber cartridge. Because he did not have documentation to show that he was in the United States lawfully, he was charged as being in violation of 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(5), which forbids illegal immigrants from possessing firearms in the United States.

Meza-Rodriquez was indicted. He then challenged the indictment by claiming 922(g)(5) impermissibly infringed on his rights under the Second Amendment to the Constitution. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin rejected Meza-Rodriquezs claim, thereby upholding the indictment. He appealed the District Courts decision, thus bringing the case to the 7th Circuit.

In working through the case, Wood indicated that certain aspects of the language inDistrict of Columbia v. Heller (2008) support the view that all people, including non-U.S. citizens, whether or not they are authorized to be in the country, enjoy at least some rights under the Second Amendment.

She elaborated:

In a post-Heller world, where it is now clear that the Second Amendment right to bear arms is no second-class entitlement, we see no principled way to carve out the Second Amendment and say that the unauthorized (or maybe all noncitizens) are excluded.No language in the Amendment supports such a conclusion, nor, as we have said, does a broader consideration of the Bill of Rights.

Yet the 7th Circuit upheld the District Courts rulingwhich upheld Meza-Rodriguezs indictmenton the grounds that the Second Amendment does not preclude certain restrictions on the right to bear arms, including the one imposed by 922(g)(5).

Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.

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Dermatitis – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Posted: at 2:44 pm

Dermatitis, also known as eczema, is inflammation of the skin. It is characterized by itchy, erythematous, vesicular, weeping, and crusting patches. The term eczema is also commonly used to describe atopic dermatitis[1][2] also known as atopic eczema.[3] In some languages, dermatitis and eczema are synonyms, while in other languages dermatitis implies an acute condition and eczema a chronic one.[4]

The cause of dermatitis is unclear.[5][6][7] One possibility is a dysfunctional interplay between the immune system and skin.[8]

The term eczema is broadly applied to a range of persistent skin conditions. These include dryness and recurring skin rashes that are characterized by one or more of these symptoms: redness, skin swelling, itching and dryness, crusting, flaking, blistering, cracking, oozing, or bleeding. Areas of temporary skin discoloration may appear and are sometimes due to healed injuries. Scratching open a healing lesion may result in scarring and may enlarge the rash.

Treatment is typically with moisturizers and steroid creams.[3] If these are not effective, creams based on calcineurin inhibitors may be used.[9] The disease was estimated as of 2010 to affect 230 million people globally (3.5% of the population).[10] While dermatitis is not life-threatening, a number of other illnesses have been linked to the condition, including osteoporosis, depression, and heart disease.[11][12]

The term "eczema" refers to a set of clinical characteristics. Classification of the underlying diseases has been haphazard and unsystematic, with many synonyms used to describe the same condition. A type of eczema may be described by location (e.g. hand eczema), by specific appearance (eczema craquele or discoid), or by possible cause (varicose eczema). Further adding to the confusion, many sources use the term eczema for the most common type of eczema (atopic dermatitis) interchangeably.

The European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) published a position paper in 2001, which simplifies the nomenclature of allergy-related diseases including atopic and allergic contact eczemas.[13] Non-allergic eczemas are not affected by this proposal.

There are several different types of dermatitis. The different kinds usually have in common an allergic reaction to specific allergens. The term may describe eczema, which is also called dermatitis eczema and eczematous dermatitis. An eczema diagnosis often implies atopic dermatitis (which is very common in children and teenagers) but, without proper context, may refer to any kind of dermatitis.[14]

In some languages, dermatitis and eczema are synonyms, while in other languages dermatitis implies an acute condition and eczema a chronic one.[4] The two conditions are often classified together.

Dermatitis symptoms vary with all different forms of the condition. They range from skin rashes to bumpy rashes or including blisters. Although every type of dermatitis has different symptoms, there are certain signs that are common for all of them, including redness of the skin, swelling, itching and skin lesions with sometimes oozing and scarring. Also, the area of the skin on which the symptoms appear tends to be different with every type of dermatitis, whether on the neck, wrist, forearm, thigh or ankle. Although the location may vary, the primary symptom of this condition is itchy skin. More rarely, it may appear on the genital area, such as the vulva or scrotum.[16] Symptoms of this type of dermatitis may be very intense and may come and go. Irritant contact dermatitis is usually more painful than itchy.

Although the symptoms of atopic dermatitis vary from person to person, the most common symptoms are dry, itchy, red skin. Typical affected skin areas include the folds of the arms, the back of the knees, wrists, face and hands.

Dermatitis herpetiformis symptoms include itching, stinging and a burning sensation. Papules and vesicles are commonly present. The small red bumps experienced in this type of dermatitis are usually about 1cm in size, red in color and may be found symmetrically grouped or distributed on the upper or lower back, buttocks, elbows, knees, neck, shoulders, and scalp.[17] Less frequently, the rash may appear inside the mouth or near the hairline.

The symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis on the other hand, tend to appear gradually, from dry or greasy scaling of the scalp (dandruff) to hair loss. In severe cases, pimples may appear along the hairline, behind the ears, on the eyebrows, on the bridge of the nose, around the nose, on the chest, and on the upper back.[18] In newborns, the condition causes a thick and yellowish scalp rash, often accompanied by a diaper rash.

Perioral dermatitis refers to a red bumpy rash around the mouth.[19]

The cause of eczema is unknown but is presumed to be a combination of genetic and environmental factors.[20]

The hygiene hypothesis postulates that the cause of asthma, eczema, and other allergic diseases is an unusually clean environment. It is supported by epidemiologic studies for asthma.[21] The hypothesis states that exposure to bacteria and other immune system modulators is important during development, and missing out on this exposure increases risk for asthma and allergy.

While it has been suggested that eczema may sometimes be an allergic reaction to the excrement from house dust mites,[22] with up to 5% of people showing antibodies to the mites,[23] the overall role this plays awaits further corroboration.[24]

A number of genes have been associated with eczema, one of which is filaggrin.[3] Genome-wide studies found three new genetic variants associated with eczema: OVOL1, ACTL9 and IL4-KIF3A.[25]

Eczema occurs about three times more frequently in individuals with celiac disease and about two times more frequently in relatives of those with celiac disease, potentially indicating a genetic link between the two conditions.[26][27]

There is no good evidence that a mother's diet during pregnancy, the formula used, or breastfeeding changes the risk.[31] There is tentative evidence that probiotics in infancy may reduce rates but it is insufficient to recommend its use.[32]

People with eczema should not get the smallpox vaccination due to risk of developing eczema vaccinatum, a potentially severe and sometimes fatal complication.[33]

There is no known cure for eczema, with treatment aiming to control symptoms by reducing inflammation and relieving itching.

Bathing once or more a day is recommended.[3] It is a misconception that bathing dries the skin in people with eczema.[34] It is not clear whether dust mite reduction helps with eczema.

There has not been adequate evaluation of changing the diet to reduce eczema.[35][36] There is some evidence that infants with an established egg allergy may have a reduction in symptoms if eggs are eliminated from their diets.[35] Benefits have not been shown for other elimination diets, though the studies are small and poorly executed.[35][36] Establishing that there is a food allergy before dietary change could avoid unnecessary lifestyle changes.[35]

People can also wear clothing designed to manage the itching, scratching and peeling.[37]Soaps and detergents should not be used on affected skin because they can strip natural skin oils and lead to excessive dryness.

Moisturizing agents (also known as emollients) are recommended at least once or twice a day.[3] Oilier formulations appear to be better and water-based formulations are not recommended.[3] It is unclear if moisturizers that contain ceramides are more or less effective than others.[38] Products that contain dyes, perfumes, or peanuts should not be used.[3]Occlusive dressings at night may be useful.[3]

There is little evidence for antihistamine and they are thus not generally recommended.[3] Sedative antihistamines, such as diphenhydramine, may be tried in those who are unable to sleep due to eczema.[3]

If symptoms are well controlled with moisturizers, steroids may only be required when flares occur.[3]Corticosteroids are effective in controlling and suppressing symptoms in most cases.[39] Once daily use is generally enough.[3] For mild-moderate eczema a weak steroid may be used (e.g. hydrocortisone), while in more severe cases a higher-potency steroid (e.g. clobetasol propionate) may be used. In severe cases, oral or injectable corticosteroids may be used. While these usually bring about rapid improvements, they have greater side effects.

Long term use of topical steroids may result in skin atrophy, stria, telangiectasia.[3] Their use on delicate skin (face or groin) is therefore typically with caution.[3] They are, however, generally well tolerated.[40]

Topical steroid addiction (TSA) has been reported in long-term users of topical steroids (users who applied topical steroids to their skin over a period of weeks, months, or years).[41][42] TSA is characterised by uncontrollable, spreading dermatitis and worsening skin inflammation which requires a stronger topical steroid to get the same result as the first prescription. When topical steroid medication is lost, the skin experiences redness, burning, itching, hot skin, swelling, and/or oozing for a length of time. This is also called 'red skin syndrome' or 'topical steroid withdrawal'(TSW). After the withdrawal period is over the atopic dermatitis can cease or is less severe than it was before.[43]

Topical immunosuppressants like pimecrolimus and tacrolimus may be better in the short term and appear equal to steroids after a year of use.[44] Their use is reasonable in those who do not respond to or are not tolerant of steroids.[9] Treatments are typically recommended for short or fixed periods of time rather than indefinitely.[3] Tacrolimus 0.1% has generally proved more effective than picrolimus, and equal in effect to mid-potency topical steroids.[31]

The United States Food and Drug Administration has issued a health advisory a possible risk of lymph node or skin cancer from these products,[45] however subsequent research has not supported these concerns.[9] A major debate, in the UK, has been about the cost of these medications and, given only finite NHS resources, when they are most appropriate to use.[46]

When eczema is severe and does not respond to other forms of treatment, systemic immunosuppressants are sometimes used. Immunosuppressants can cause significant side effects and some require regular blood tests. The most commonly used are ciclosporin, azathioprine, and methotrexate.

Light therapy using ultraviolet light has tentative support but the quality of the evidence is not very good.[47] A number of different types of light may be used including UVA and UVB;[48] in some forms of treatment, light sensitive chemicals such as psoralen are also used. Overexposure to ultraviolet light carries its own risks, particularly that of skin cancer.[49]

There is currently no scientific evidence for the claim that sulfur treatment relieves eczema.[50] It is unclear whether Chinese herbs help or harm.[51] Dietary supplements are commonly used by people with eczema.[52] Neither evening primrose oil nor borage seed oil taken orally have been shown to be effective.[53] Both are associated with gastrointestinal upset.[53]Probiotics do not appear to be effective.[54] There is insufficient evidence to support the use of zinc, selenium, vitamin D, vitamin E, pyridoxine (vitamin B6), sea buckthorn oil, hempseed oil, sunflower oil, or fish oil as dietary supplements.[52]

Other remedies lacking evidential support include chiropractic spinal manipulation and acupuncture.[55] There is little evidence supporting the use of psychological treatments.[56] While dilute bleach baths have been used for infected dermatitis there is little evidence for this practice.[57]

Most cases are well managed with topical treatments and ultraviolet light.[3] About 2% of cases however are not.[3] In more than 60% the condition goes away by adolescence.[3]

Globally eczema affected approximately 230million people as of 2010 (3.5% of the population).[58] The lifetime clinician-recorded prevalence of eczema has been seen to peak in infancy, with female predominance of eczema presentations occurring during the reproductive period of 1549 years.[59] In the UK about 20% of children have the condition, while in the United States about 10% are affected.[3]

Although little data on the rates of eczema over time exists prior to the Second World War (193945), the rate of eczema has been found to have increased substantially in the latter half of the 20th Century, with eczema in school-aged children being found to increase between the late 1940s and 2000.[60] In the developed world there has been rise in the rate of eczema over time. The incidence and lifetime prevalence of eczema in England has been seen to increase in recent times.[3][61]

Dermatitis affected about 10% of U.S. workers in 2010, representing over 15 million workers with dermatitis. Prevalence rates were higher among females than among males, and among those with some college education or a college degree compared to those with a high school diploma or less. Workers employed in healthcare and social assistance industries and life, physical, and social science occupations had the highest rates of reported dermatitis. About 6% of dermatitis cases among U.S. workers were attributed to work by a healthcare professional, indicating that the prevalence rate of work-related dermatitis among workers was at least 0.6%.[62]

from Ancient Greek kzema,[63] from - ekz-ein, from ek "out" + - z-ein "to boil"

The term "atopic dermatitis" was coined in 1933 by Wise and Sulzberger.[64]Sulfur as a topical treatment for eczema was fashionable in the Victorian and Edwardian eras.[50]

The word dermatitis is from the Greek derma "skin" and - -itis "inflammation" and eczema is from Greek: ekzema "eruption".

The terms "hypoallergenic" and "doctor tested" are not regulated,[65] and no research has been done showing that products labeled "hypoallergenic" are in fact less problematic than any others.

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Amazon.com: Ron Paul: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle

Posted: at 2:43 pm

Ron Paul, an eleven-term congressman from Texas, is the leading advocate of freedom in our nation's capital. He has devoted his political career to the defense of individual liberty, sound money, and a non-interventionist foreign policy. Judge Andrew Napolitano calls him "the Thomas Jefferson of our day."After serving as a flight surgeon in the U.S. Air Force in the 1960s, Dr. Paul moved to Texas to begin a civilian medical practice, delivering over four thousand babies in his career as an obstetrician. He served in Congress from 1976 to 1984, and again from 1996 to the present. He and Carol Paul, his wife of fifty-one years, have five children, eighteen grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.Ron Paul, the New York Post once wrote, is a politician who "cannot be bought by special interests.""There are few people in public life who, through thick and thin, rain or shine, stick to their principles," added a congressional colleague. "Ron Paul is one of those few."

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Science and the Afterlife Experience: Evidence for the …

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Review

Chris Carter addresses the question that is, or should be, the single most important question for any being that considers himselfor suspects himself to bemortal. He argues that this is not the case. If he is right than this is not only the single most life-transforming realization for a mortal or perhaps immortal being, but also one of the most potent realizations that could prompt such a being to enter on a better path during his or her known life. And a better path is one that people now absolutely need to enter upon now if they are to thrive as individuals, and if humanity is to survive as a species. (Ervin Laszlo, Ph.D., author of The New Science and Spirituality Reader and Science and the Akashic F)

The evidence in favour of an afterlife is vast and varied. The evidence from near-death experiences and deathbed visions was described in two previous books by Chris Carter. Science and the Afterlife is the final work of his trilogy, and one will see in this wonderful book that we do indeed have strongly repeatable evidence for the continuity of consciousness after physical death, based on children who remember previous lives, reports of apparitions, and communication from the deceased. What all these cases show is that human personality survives death and, by implication, human consciousness can exist independently of a functioning brain. When one has read the overwhelming evidence as described in this excellent book it seems quite impossible not to be convinced that there should be some form of life after death. Any continuing opposition to the evidence is based on nothing more than willful ignorance or ideology. Highly recommended. (Pim van Lommel, MD, Cardiologist, author of Consciousness Beyond Life)

Chris Carters Science and the Afterlife Experience is a vigorous, detailed exploration of survival following physical death. It is a withering rebuttal of the perennial, timeworn, anemic arguments of skeptics. This book is extraordinarily important-for, as Jung said, The decisive question for man is: Is he related to something infinite or not? That is the telling question of his life. This brilliant book is an antidote to the fear of death and annihilation. It will help any reader find greater meaning, hope, and fulfillment in life. (Larry Dossey, M.D., author of The Power of Premonitions and the New York Times bestseller, Healing W)

evidence that consciousness survives bodily death is overwhelming for those with open minds. Chris Carter has presented some of the best evidence offered by the near-death experience. In this book, he astutely examines impressive and irrefutable evidence coming to us from the study of reincarnation, apparitions, and mediumship. Its informative, interesting, intriguing, and inspirational. (Michael Tymn, author of The Afterlife Revealed and The Afterlife Explorers)

This clearly written book, by one of the worlds few experts on what evidence actually bears on the survival question, points to some kind of survival. If that fact doesnt grab your attention and make you want to know more youre not thinking. (Charles Tart PhD., Professor Emeritus of Psychology University of California, Davis; a Senior)

The third volume of Chris Carters trilogy may be the best. Reincarnation, ghostlike visions, and messages from the dead make for some very stimulating reading. As an historical chronicle alone this would be a valuable work. But Carters historical treatment also combines philosophy and analysis into an always interesting and wellorganized treatise. (Robert Bobrow, M.D., Clinical Associate Professor of Family Medicine, Department of Family Medicine,)

Survival of human consciousness past the point of biological death is a fact. That will seem an extraordinary claim to some, and they may reasonably demand extraordinary evidence to support it. Carter has both made the claim and provided the evidence. (Guy Lyon Playfair, author of This House is Haunted, If This Be Magic, and Twin Telepathy)

Scientists and philosophers who have seriously studied the phenomenon of mediumship have concluded that there are only two hypotheses that, if true, would account for all the observed empirical data: either (i) human consciousness survives the death of its body or (ii) human consciousness possesses extraordinary abilities known as superESP. In Science and the Afterlife Experience, Chris Carter presents the data supporting survival with remarkable clarity and shows that the socalled superESP hypothesis is pseudoscience, and that its purpose is not to advance knowledge but rather to block an otherwise straightforward inference from empirical data to the hypothesis of survival. With the superESP hypothesis disposed of, Carter boldly (and correctly, in my opinion) concludes that the survival of consciousness after the death of the body is a scientific fact, as well established as any other scientific fact. (Neal Grossman, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, University of Illinois at Chicago)

Addiction to the materialistic paradigm has wreaked immense havoc upon the world over the last few centuries. Many believe it has brought us to the brink of an apocalypse. Chris Carter opens this marvelous book with a statement of concurrence with philosopher David Griffen on the current dire predicament wrought by this addiction, and how it has reached a crucial juncture. Coming to know that our souls do not die with our bodies but they have a much grander role on the stage of eternity, offers a glorious reprieve from this ignominious fate that is the inevitable result of limited materialistic beliefs. This book proceeds through a detailed review of reincarnation, apparitions and messages from the dead. In my opinion, he establishes the existence of the afterlife beyond a reasonable doubt. I congratulate him on such a solid synthesis of the relevant data and arguments, both for and against. (Eben Alexander III, M.D., Director of Research, The Monroe Institute, Faber, VA, author of Proof of)

Those who think they already know the answers dont need to waste their time with this book. For the rest of us, it is a gem. We should drop the pretense that the question of survival is not worthy of the attention of really smart people. It is and always has been the key question of humans throughout history. Thank you, Chris Carter, for shedding light on this, the Greatest Question. (Larry Dossey, MD., author of The Power of Premonitions and Reinventing Medicine)

[Chris Carter] presents something for everyone in a finely researched package that comes to its conclusions in a way that utilizes the scientific method. (Jennifer Hoskins, New Dawn, January 2013)

An intriguing dissection of consciousness and what it means to the history of our lives and world, Science and the Afterlife Experience is a strong addition to metaphysical spirituality collections, recommended. (Midwest Book Review, March 2013)

Carter has seemingly touched all the bases in thoroughly and effectively examining the evidence for life after death. (Michael Tymn s., Fate Magazine, June 2013)

SPIRITUALITY / SCIENCE

When one has read the overwhelming evidence as described in this excellent book, it seems quite impossible not to be convinced that there should be some form of life after death. Highly recommended. --Pim Van Lommel, M.D., cardiologist and author of Consciousness beyond Life

This brilliant book is an antidote to the fear of death and annihilation. It will help any reader find greater meaning, hope, and fulfillment in life. --Larry Dossey, M.D., author of The Power of Premonitions and the New York Times bestseller Healing Words

In this book Chris Carter shows that evidence of life beyond death exists and has been around for millennia, predating any organized religion. Focusing on three key phenomena--reincarnation, apparitions, and communications from the dead--Carter reveals 125 years of documented scientific studies by independent researchers and the British and American Societies for Psychical Research that rule out hoaxes, fraud, and hallucinations and prove these afterlife phenomena are real.

The author examines historic and modern accounts of detailed past-life memories, visits from the deceased, and communications with the dead via medium and automatic writing as well as the scientific methods used to confirm these experiences. He explains how these findings on the afterlife have been ignored and denied because they are incompatible with the prevailing doctrine of materialism. Sharing messages describing the afterlife from the dead themselves, Carter reveals how consciousness exists outside the parameters of biological evolution and emerges through the medium of the brain to use the physical world as a springboard for growth. After death, souls can advance to higher planes of consciousness or manifest once again on Earth. Carters rigorous argument proves--beyond any reasonable doubt--that consciousness not only survives death and continues in the afterlife but also that it precedes birth as well.

CHRIS CARTER received his undergraduate and masters degrees from the University of Oxford. The author of Science and the Near-Death Experience and Science and Psychic Phenomena, he is originally from Canada and currently teaches internationally.

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Pros and Cons of Genetic Engineering in Humans – Part 1

Posted: at 5:45 am

The human body is not perfect. Some are created with inherent faults and others break down before their time. Science has the potential to make good these problems by altering how humans are made. This is genetic engineering, and this article looks at the pros and cons of the technology in humans

This is part one of a two-part series. Here I will look at a definition of genetic engineering and the pros of human genetic engineering. In part two the cons and the ethics of human genetic engineering are discussed.

Before weighing up the pros and cons of genetic engineering in humans, it's worth taking the time to understand just what is meant by the idea. Simply put, it's a way of manipulating our genes in such a way as to make our bodies better. This alteration of a genome could take place in the sperm and egg cells. This is known as germline gene therapy and would alter the traits that a child is born with. The changes would be inheritable and passed down through the generations. It is currently illegal in many countries.

The other way to change our genome is to swap our bad genes for good ones - in cells other than the sex cells. This is known as somatic cell gene therapy. This is where a functioning gene could be fired into our bodies on a viral vector to carry out the functions that a faulty gene is unable to. This technology is permitted, though it has enjoyed a very limited success rate so far (largely because it is technically very difficult). Nonetheless, it still holds out a great deal of promise.

There are many potential advantages to being able to alter the cells in our bodies genetically.

To make disease a thing of the past

Most people on the planet die of disease or have family members that do. Very few of us will just pop up to bed one night and gently close our eyes for the last time. Our genomes are not as robust as we would like them to be and genetic mutations either directly cause a disease such as Cystic fibrosis, or they contribute to it greatly i.e. Alzheimer's. Or in the case of some conditions such as the heart disease Cardiomyopathy, genetic mutations can make our bodies more susceptible to attack from viruses or our own immune system. If the full benefits of gene therapy are ever realised we can replace the dud genes with correctly functioning copies.

To extend life spans

Having enjoyed life, most of us want to cling on to it for as long as possible. The genetic engineering of humans has the potential to greatly increase our life spans. Some estimates reckon that 100-150 years could be the norm. Of course gene therapy for a fatal condition will increase the lifespan of the patient but we're also talking about genetic modifications of healthy people to give them a longer life. Once we fully understand the genetics of ageing it may be possible to slow down or reverse some of the cellular mechanisms that lead to our decline - for example by preventing telomeres at the ends of chromosomes from shortening. Telomere shortening is known to contribute to cell senescence.

Better pharmaceuticals

The knowledge gained by working out genetic solutions for the above could help with the design of better pharmaceutical products that are able to target specifically genetic mutations in each individual.

So What's the Downside?

As deliriously exciting as some people believe genetic engineering to be - there are several downsides and ethical dilemmas. Click the link to read the cons.

This two part series explores some of the pros and cons of human genetic engineering.

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NSA – New Jersey 101.5

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President Barack Obama speaks to the media on Friday, Aug 7, 2015, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

A federal appeals court on Friday ruled in favor of the Obama administration in a dispute over the National Security Agency's bulk collection of telephone data on hundreds of millions of Americans.

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Eliminating the National Security Agency's bulk collection of Americans' telephone records will make the U.S. less safe, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Wednesday.

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The White House wants the National Security Agency to get out of the business of sweeping up and storing vast amounts of data on Americans' phone calls.

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A sharply divided government task force that reviewed the National Security Agency's surveillance program for four months has urged President Barack Obama to shut down the agency's bulk collection of phone data and purge its massive inventory of millions of Americans' calling records.

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Seeking to calm a furor over U.S. surveillance, President Barack Obama on Friday called for ending the government's control of phone data from hundreds of millions of Americans and immediately ordered intelligence agencies to get a secretive court's permission before accessing such records.

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President Barack Obama is expected to endorse changes to the way the government collects millions of Americans' phone records for possible future surveillance, but he'll leave many of the specific adjustments for Congress to sort out, according to three U.S. offi

National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden says his "mission's already accomplished" after leaking NSA secrets that have caused a reassessment of U.S. surveillance policies.

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President Barack Obama is meeting with members of an intelligence task force to discuss their recommendations on how to modify the National Security Agency's surveillance programs.

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President Barack Obama is meeting today with executives from leading technology companies, including Google, Twitter and Apple.

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A federal judge ruled Monday that the National Security Agency's bulk collection of phone records violates the Constitution's ban on unreasonable searches, but put his decision on hold pending a near-certain government appeal.

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Freedom (Franzen novel) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Freedom is a novel by American author Jonathan Franzen. It was published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux and released on August 31, 2010.

Freedom received general acclaim from book critics, and was ranked one of the best books of 2010 by several publications.

Freedom follows several members of an American family, the Berglunds, as well as their close friends and lovers, as complex and troubled relationships unfold over many years. The book follows them through the last decades of the twentieth century and concludes near the beginning of the Obama administration.

Freedom opens with a short history of the Berglund family from the perspective of their nosy neighbors. The Berglunds are portrayed as the most ideal liberal middle-class family, and they are among the first families to move back into urban St. Paul, Minnesota, after years of white flight to the suburbs. Patty Berglund is an unusually young and pretty homemaker with a self-deprecating sense of humor; her husband Walter is a mild-mannered lawyer with strong environmentalist leanings.

They have one daughter, Jessica, and a son, Joey, who early on displays an independent streak and an interest in making money. Joey becomes sexually involved with a neighborhood teen named Connie and begins to rebel against his mother, going so far as to move in with Connie, her mother, and her mother's boyfriend Blake, making Patty and Walter increasingly unstable. After several unhappy years, the family relocates to Washington, D.C., abandoning the neighborhood and house they worked so hard to improve. Walter takes a job with an unorthodox environmental project, tied to big coal.

The second portion of the book takes the form of an autobiography of Patty Berglund, composed at the suggestion of her therapist. The autobiography tells of Patty's youth as a star basketball player, and her increasing alienation from her artistically inclined parents and sisters. Instead of attending an East Coast elite college like her siblings, she gets a basketball scholarship to the University of Minnesota and adopts the life of the athlete. She meets an attractive but unattainable indie rock musician named Richard Katz, and his nerdy but kind roommate, Walter Berglund. After her basketball career-ending knee injury, Patty suddenly becomes desperate for male affection, and after failing to woo Richard, she settles down with Walter, who had been patiently courting her for more than a year. We learn that Patty retained her desire for Richard and eventually had a brief affair with him at the Berglunds' lakeside cabin.

The novel then jumps ahead to New York City in 2004 and shifts to the story of Walter and Patty's friend Richard, who has finally succeeded in becoming a minor indie rock star in his middle age. His hit album Nameless Lake tells the story of his brief love affair with Patty at the Berglunds' lakeside cabin in Minnesota. Richard is uncomfortable with commercial success, throws away his new-found money, and returns to building roof decks for wealthy people in Manhattan. Walter calls him out of the blue to enlist his help as a celebrity spokesman for an environmental campaign. Walter has taken a job in Washington, D.C. working for a coal mining magnate who wants to strip mine a section of West Virginia forest before turning it into a songbird preserve of future environmental value. Walter hopes to use some of this project's funding to hold a concert to combat overpopulation, the common factor behind all his environmental concerns, and he believes that Richard will be able to rally well-known musicians to his cause. Meanwhile, Walter's marriage to Patty has been deteriorating steadily, and his pretty young assistant Lalitha has fallen deeply in love with him.

In parallel, the Berglunds' estranged, Republican son Joey attempts to finance his college life at the University of Virginia by taking on a dubious subcontract to provide spare parts for outdated supply trucks during the Iraq War. While at college, he marries his childhood sweetheart but dares not tell his parents. After visiting his roommate's family in the DC suburbs, he also pursues his friend's beautiful sister Jenna and is exposed to her father's Zionist, neoconservative politics. After months of pursuing Jenna, when she finally wants him to have sex with her, he cannot maintain an erection. Later he becomes conflicted after making $850,000 selling defective truck parts to military suppliers in Iraq. In the end Joey gives away the excess proceeds of his profiteering, reconciles with his parents, settles down with Connie, and moves into a sustainable coffee business with the help of his father Walter.

Now, Richard's re-appearance destroys Walter and Patty's weakening marriage. Richard tries to convince Patty to leave Walter, but she shows Richard the autobiography she wrote as "therapy", trying to convince him that she's still in love with Walter. Richard deliberately leaves the autobiography on Walter's desk, and Walter reads Patty's true thoughts. Walter kicks Patty out of the house, and she moves to Jersey City to be with Richard, but the relationship only lasts six months. Later, she moves to Brooklyn alone and takes a job at a private school, discovering her skill for teaching younger children. When Patty leaves him, Walter has a catharsis on live television, revealing his contempt for the displaced West Virginian families and his various commercial backers. Local rednecks respond by dragging him from the platform and beating him up. He is promptly fired by the environmental trust, but his TV debacle makes him a viral video hero to radical youth across the nation. He and his assistant Lalitha become lovers and continue their plans to combat overpopulation through a concert to rally young people in the hills of West Virginia. Lalitha is killed in a suspicious car accident a few days before the concert is due to take place. Shattered, and having lost both of the women who loved him, Walter retreats to his family's lakeside vacation house back in Minnesota. He becomes known to a new street of neighbors as a cranky old recluse, obsessed with house cats killing birds nesting on his property.

After a few years living in Brooklyn, Patty's father dies and she is forced to settle the fight that erupts within her family of spoiled bohemians as they attempt to split up the much-diminished family fortune. This experience helps Patty to mature. After a few years of living alone, she appraises the emptiness of her life and honestly faces her advancing age. She decides to hunt down Walter, the only man who had ever really loved her. She drives to the lakeside cabin in Minnesota, and despite his rage and confusion, he eventually agrees to take her back. The book ends in 2008 as they leave as a couple to return to Patty's job in New York City, after turning their old lakeside vacation home into a cat-proof fenced bird sanctuary, named in memory of Lalitha.

After the critical acclaim and popular success of his third novel The Corrections in 2001, Franzen began work on his fourth full-length novel. When asked during an October 30, 2002 interview on Charlie Rose how far he was into writing the new novel, Franzen replied:

I'm about a year of frustration and confusion into it...Y'know, I'm kind of down at the bottom of the submerged iceberg peering up for the surface of the water...I don't have doubt about my ability to write a good book, but I have lots of doubt about what it's going to look like.[1]

Franzen went on to suggest that a basic story outline was in place, and that his writing of the new novel was like a "guerilla war" approaching different aspects of the novel (alluding to characters, dialogue, plot development etc.).[1] Franzen also agreed that he would avoid public appearances, saying that "...getting some work done is the vacation" from the promotional work surrounding The Corrections and How To Be Alone.[1]

An excerpt entitled "Good Neighbors" appeared in the June 8 and June 15, 2009 issues of The New Yorker.[2] The magazine published a second extract entitled "Agreeable" in the May 31, 2010 edition.[3]

On October 16, 2009, Franzen made an appearance alongside David Bezmozgis at the New Yorker Festival at the Cedar Lake Theatre to read a portion of his forthcoming novel.[4][5] Sam Allard, writing for North By Northwestern website covering the event, said that the "...material from his new (reportedly massive) novel" was "as buoyant and compelling as ever" and "marked by his familiar undercurrent of tragedy".[5] Franzen read "an extended clip from the second chapter."[5]

On March 12, 2010, details about the plot and content of Freedom were published in the Macmillan fall catalogue for 2010.[6]

In an interview with Dave Haslam on October 3, 2010 Franzen discussed why he had called the book Freedom:

The reason I slapped the word on the book proposal I sold three years ago without any clear idea of what kind of book it was going to be is that I wanted to write a book that would free me in some way. And I will say this about the abstract concept of 'freedom'; it's possible you are freer if you accept what you are and just get on with being the person you are, than if you maintain this kind of uncommitted I'm free-to-be-this, free-to-be-that, faux freedom.[7]

Freedom received general acclaim from book critics, particularly for its writing and characterization. Shortly after the book's release, the front cover of a TIME magazine issue showed a picture of Franzen above the words "Great American Novelist," making him the first author to appear on the front cover in a decade.

Sam Tanenhaus of The New York Times and Benjamin Alsup of Esquire believed it measured up to Franzen's previous novel, The Corrections. Tanenhaus called it a "masterpiece of American fiction," writing that it "[told] an engrossing story" and "[illuminated], through the steady radiance of its authors profound moral intelligence, the world we thought we knew."[8] Alsup called it a great American novel. "[9] In The Millions, Garth Risk Hallberg argued that readers who enjoyed The Corrections would enjoy Freedom. He also wrote that they're "likely to come away from this novel moved in harder-to-fathom waysand grateful for it."[10] An editor for Publishers Weekly wrote that it stood apart from most modern fiction because "Franzen tries to account for his often stridently unlikable characters and find where they (and we) went wrong, arriving atincrediblygenuine hope."[11]

Benjamin Secher of The Telegraph called Franzen one of America's best living novelists, and Freedom the first great American novel of the "post-Obama era."[12] In The Guardian, Jonathan Jones called him "a literary genius" and wrote that Freedom stood on "a different plane from other contemporary fiction."[13]

Michiko Kakutani called the book "galvanic" and wrote that it showcased Franzen's talent as a storyteller and "his ability to throw open a big, Updikean picture window on American middle-class life." Kakutani also praised the novel's characterization, going on to call it a "compelling biography of a dysfunctional family and an indelible portrait of our times."[14]The Economist wrote that the novel contained "fully imagined characters in a powerful narrative." The reviewer went on to say that it had "all its predecessor's power and none of its faults."[15]

Not all reviews were raving. Most lukewarm reviews praised the novel's prose, but believed the author's left-wing political stance was too obvious. Sam Anderson, in a review for New York magazine, thought the characterization was strong, but perceived the politics as sometimes too heavy-handed: "Franzen the crankmighty detester of Twitter, ATVs, and housing developments" occasionally "overpower[s] Franzen the artist [...] but if crankiness is the motor that powers Franzen's art, I'm perfectly willing to sit through some speeches."[16]Ron Charles of The Washington Post also felt less favorably, remarking that it lacked the wit and "[freshness]" of The Corrections. Charles praised Franzen's prose and called him "an extraordinary stylist," but questioned how many readers would settle for good writing as "sufficient compensation for what is sometimes a misanthropic slog."[17] In addition, Ruth Franklin of The New Republic believed the novel resembled a "soap opera" more than it did an epic, and that Franzen had forgotten "the greatest novels must [...] offer [...] profundity and pleasure."[18]

Alexander Nazaryan criticized its familiarity in the New York Daily News remarking that the author "can write about a gentrifying family in St. Paul. Or maybe in St. Louis. But that's about it. Nazaryan also didn't believe Franzen was joking when he suggested "being doomed as a novelist never to do anything but stories of Midwestern families."[19]Alan Cheuse of National Public Radio found the novel "[brilliant]" but not enjoyable, suggesting that "every line, every insight, seems covered with a light film of disdain. Franzen seems never to have met a normal, decent, struggling human being whom he didn't want to make us feel ever so slightly superior to. His book just has too much brightness and not enough color."[20]

Ross Douthat of First Things praised the "stretches of Freedom that read like a master class in how to write sympathetically about the kind of characters" with an abundance of freedom. Yet, Douthat concluded the novel was overlong, feeling the "impression that Franzen's talents are being wasted on his characters."[21]

Freedom won the John Gardner Fiction Award. Additionally, it was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction. The American Library Association also named it a notable fiction of the 2010 publishing year.

Oprah Winfrey made Freedom her first book club selection of 2010, saying, "this book is a masterpiece."[22][23] US President Barack Obama called it "terrific" after reading it over the summer.[24]

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Tor Browser – Whonix

Posted: August 28, 2015 at 5:43 pm

It is recommended[1], that you use only Tor Browser for browsing the web in Whonix.

Tor Browser[2] is a fork[3] of the Mozilla Firefox[4] web browser, optimized[5] and designed[6] for anonymity, developed by The Tor Project[7]. Given Firefox's popularity, many of you have probably used it before and its user interface is like any other modern web browser.

Here are a few things worth mentioning in the context of Whonix.

When you were to use other browsers than Tor Browser, your IP/DNS would still be protected by Whonix, but you wouldn't profit from Tor Browser's protocol level cleanup. Using other browsers would be pseudonymous rather than anonymous.

Tor Browser in comparison to other browsers is optimized for anonymity, it contains privacy enhancing patches[8] and add-ons[9]. There are no other browsers other than Tor Browser capable of protocol level cleanup. When you use Tor Browser, you will blend in and share the Fingerprint of other Tor Browser users, which is a good thing.

Using HTTPS instead of HTTP encrypts your communication while browsing the web.

All the data exchanged between your browser and the server you are visiting are encrypted. It prevents the Tor exit relay to eavesdrop on your communications.

HTTPS also includes mechanisms to authenticate the server you are communicating with. But those mechanisms can be flawed, as explained on our warning page.

For example, here is how the browser looks like when we try to log in an email account at lavabit.com[10], using their interface[11]:

Notice the small area on the left of the address bar saying "lavabit.com" on a blue background and the address beginning with "https://" (instead of "http://"):

These are the indicators that an encrypted connection using HTTPS[12] is being used.

You should try to only use services providing HTTPS when you are sending or retrieving sensitive information (like passwords), otherwise it's very easy for an eavesdropper to steal whatever information you are sending or to modify the content of a page on its way to your browser.

HTTPS Everywhere[13] is a Firefox extension shipped in Tor Browser and produced as a collaboration between The Tor Project[14] and the Electronic Frontier Foundation[15]. It encrypts your communications with a number of major websites. Many sites on the web offer some limited support for encryption over HTTPS, but make it difficult to use. For instance, they may default to unencrypted HTTP, or fill encrypted pages with links that go back to the unencrypted site. The HTTPS Everywhere extension fixes these problems by rewriting all requests to these sites to HTTPS.

To learn more about HTTPS Everywhere you can see:

Tor alone is not enough to protect your anonymity and privacy while browsing the web. All modern web browsers, such as Firefox, support JavaScript[16], Adobe Flash[17], cookies[18] and other features which have been shown to be able to defeat the anonymity [19] provided by the Tor network.

In Tor Browser all such features are handled from inside the browser, because it's a modified version of Firefox Patches[20] and it contains an extension called Torbutton[21]. These do all sorts of things to prevent the above type of attacks. But that comes at a price: since this will disable some functionalities and some sites might not work as intended. Don't worry too much about this, the vast majority of websites works very well.

To learn more about Torbutton you can see:

To learn more about Data Collection Techniques, Fingerprinting you can see:

The New Identity button on Tor Browser isn't perfect yet (NOT a Whonix issue), there are open bugs.[22]

How.

Please understand New Identity and Tor circuits to learn what this actually does and what its limitations are.

Having all JavaScript disabled by default would disable a lot of harmless and possibly useful JavaScript and render unusable many websites. This would scare away lots of potential users "because it just doesn't work". Torbutton disables all potentially dangerous JavaScript. On the other hand, having a big user base is important for good anonymity as this very interesting mail by Roger Dingledine explains.[23]

That's why JavaScript is enabled by default in Tor Browser. We consider this as a necessary compromise between security and usability and as of today we are not aware of any JavaScript that would compromise Whonix anonymity.

For more technical details you can refer to the Torbutton design document.[24] Another related discussion justifying why JavaScript is enabled by default in Tor Browser was on tor-talk, "Tor Browser disabling Javascript anonymity set reduction".[25]

NoScript also comes with Tor Browser and provides many protections, even though JavaScript is enabled by default. You shouldn't mess with NoScript settings in Tor Browser unless you exactly know what you are doing.

For more information you can refer to the NoScript website and features.

It might be better for privacy and anonymity not to maximize the Tor Browser window.

The regular Tor Browser Bundle and Tor Browser in Whonix slightly differ. The environment Tor Browser is running in has been adjusted by Whonix to work behind the Whonix-Gateway. The network and browser fingerprint however, is the same.

Tor Browser's internal update check mechanism is untouched and works fine. Default homepage is currently blank instead of original about:tor. [26]

Short: You don't need to change any proxy settings in Tor Browser.

Long: [27]

For better isolation of different identities. For advanced users. Moved to the Advanced Security Guide.

As of Whonix 11, you will be notified about new Tor Browser versions by whonixcheck - this will be deprecated in Whonix 12 (no more need).

Tor Browser's Internal Updater, built in stock update notification mechanism also works in Whonix. Use it.

Tor Browser Updater (Whonix) does not yet notice upgrades done by the internal updater. This will be fixed in Whonix 12.

The Tor Project configured Tor Browser since version 5.0 to update itself. [28]

Additionally it might also be wise to subscribe to blog of the creators of Tor Browser https://blog.torproject.org for news.

Tor Browser Downloader (Whonix) was previously called Tor Browser Updater (Whonix). It has/will be renamed in Whonix 12 to Tor Browser Downloader (Whonix), because it is incapable of keeping user data, for example bookmarks and passwords. If you would like to keep your user data, use Tor Browser Internal Updater instead.

Here are some (older) Tor Browser Downloader (Whonix) Screenshots.

(Also available as CLI version.)

Tor Browser version check and update (after confirmation) in Whonix can be done with:

Helps to keep you safe.

There is currently no reliable way for a program to securely determine the latest stable version of Tor Browser with reasonable certainty. [29][30] When the version format changes, the automated parser of version information could falsely suggest, a still considered secure, stable version that is not the latest stable version, an alpha, beta or rc (release candidate) version. Rather, you could be the target of a denial of service, indefinite freeze or rollback (downgrade) attack. [31][32]

Therefore the intelligence of the user is utilized as a sanity check. The Download Confirmation Screen enables users to detect such situations and abort.

Version numbers you see under Online versions come from the Tor Browser online RecommendedTBBVersions versions file that is provided by The Tor Project and parsed by Whonix's Tor Browser Updater. All versions listed in that file are considered up to date, i.e. no upgrade required by The Tor Project.

TODO: expand

Helps to keep you safe.

There is currently no reliable way for a program to securely determine if your download of Tor Browser was a target of an indefinite freeze or rollback attack with reasonable certainty. [33][34]

When verifying cryptographic signatures there are multiple important aspects.

By the time you see the Installation Confirmation Screen, the verification of the signature [36] already succeeded, but again the intelligence of the user has to be utilized to make sure there the user is not target of an indefinite freeze or downgrade attack.

Previous Signature Creation Date: When Tor Browser was previously installed by tb-updater, then tb-updater will have stored the creation date of the accompanying signature the signed Tor Browser. The Previous Signature Creation Date field shows you that date.

Last Signature Creation Date: This field shows you the date of the creation of the signature that was just downloaded.

Here is a screenshot:

[37][38]

TODO: Expand.

A future update of Tor Browser by The Tor Project might make Whonix's Tor Browser Updater or Tor Browser running in Whonix-Workstation unusable. In case Tor Browser (Updater) inside Whonix-Workstation breaks, a news with instructions on how to fix the issue will be posted within a few days. If not, the Whonix developers are not aware of the issue.

If the Tor Browser update script is ever broken, you are advised to update manually, see Manually Updating Tor Browser.

Tor Browser's Internal Updater Popup Screenshot:

Tor Browser's Internal Updater Wizard Screenshot:

Here you can see a screenshot of Tor Browser's menu bar that contains Tor Browser's Internal Updater Update Symbol:

Tor Browser's Internal Updater Update Symbol: The following symbol is quite useful. It indicates, that Torbutton has found out, that there is an update.

A screenshot of about:tor, that is as useful as the above symbol:

Tor Browser is not installed by default anymore. If you are interested in the reasons why, see footnote. [39]

Note, accessing 127.0.0.1 using Tor Browser is no longer possible due to a change in Tor Browser by The Tor Project. You could set to transparent torification, but then you would be vulnerable to fingerprinting issues. See Tor Browser, Local Connections for more information and a workaround.

A proxy exception in TBB must be configured to interact with software listening on localhost, for example, YaCy. TBB blocks communication with localhost to mitigate some fingerprinting attacks[40]. Note that this exception means a small trade-off in privacy but is much safer than using another browser [41]. Read on about steps to further minimize the risks.

To add an exception click on:

Proxies have different instructions and will not work with these steps, see Tor Browser Proxy Configuration.

Threat Details

According to this Firefox ticket, JavaScript can be abused to scan internal networks, fingerprint devices, and make malicious commands to those devices if they have a web interface.

Analysis

There are no embedded devices attached to a Whonix internal network, its isolated and untrusted. However malicious JavaScript (JS) will be able to tell an attacker that a service is running on a localhost port. This can reduce your anonymity set.

Malicious misconfiguration of daemons listening on localhost is possible but with limited impact because traffic is still forced through Whonix-Gateway.

Recommendations

Possible extra actions would be to:

Misc

Due to a bug in Tor Browser [42], extra steps are required to use proxies with Tor Browser. Note that these instructions do not apply to accessing local web-interfaces.

1. Install FoxyProxy add-on in Tor Browser

2. Change Tor Browser Settings:

See Browser Plugins.

If you want the browser interface in a different language than English, see Language.

To protect the system and your data from some types of attack against Tor Browser, you could consider to install Whonix's Tor Browser AppArmor profile.

As a consequence, it can only read and write to a limited number of folders. This is why you might face Permission denied errors, for example if you try to download files to the home folder. You can save files from Tor Browser to the ~/Downloads folder that is located in the home folder. If you want to upload files with Tor Browser, copy them to that folder first.

This is an advanced topic.

As reported, setting a custom homepage in Tor Browser settings might not work.

Technical background: [43]

To set a custom homepage, you could try to purge the whonix-welcome-page package. [44] But this is difficult due to technical limitations as explained on the Whonix Debian Packages page.

Alternatively, could modify /usr/lib/whonix-welcome-page/env_var.sh, but these changes would be reverted after upgrade. [45]

Or you could set environment variable TOR_DEFAULT_HOMEPAGE to a custom value. Doing so would be similar setting environment variables as explained in #Transparent Torification - No Proxy - System Default.

This is an advanced topic. You most likely only need it in custom configurations, such as when using a Whonix-Custom-Workstation.

First of all, should it have failed, TorButton should notice, that it could not connect to Tor's ControlPort and should report, that giving a new identity failed. If you don't get such an error popup, it is a good indication, that there are no issues.

After the browser restarted, on the about:tor page, click "Test Tor Network Settings". It will lead to https://check.torproject.org (check.tpo) (or manually visit check.tpo, it doesn't matter.). In most cases (Not all! [46]) you should have a new exit relay. Check.tpo should report different IP.

On Whonix-Gateway, watch Control Port Filter Proxy's log while using TorButton's New Identity feature.

If you see something like this.

Then Control Port Filter Proxy received the request from Tor Browser and got Tor's okay, that it worked.

This is an advanced topic. You most likely only need it in custom configurations, such as when not using Control Port Filter Proxy.

Simulate, what TorButton would do.

1. Close Tor Browser. 2. Get new identity on Whonix-Gateway using arm. 3. Start Tor Browser again. 4. Done.

This is an advanced topic. You most likely only need it for advanced tunneling scenarios.

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Tor Browser - Whonix

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Onion Browser on the App Store on iTunes – Apple

Posted: at 5:43 pm

Description

Onion Browser is a Tor-powered web browser that helps you access the internet with more privacy.

Featured in: The New York Times, The Guardian, Salon, TechCrunch, Gizmodo, Boing Boing, Lifehacker, Macworld, & others.

--------------------

Internet access tunneled over the Tor network: - Websites do not see your real IP address. - ISPs and insecure wireless networks cannot see your browsing. - Access .onion websites: anonymous "hidden service" sites only accessible through Tor. - Can access websites, even behind some types of internet filters and censors. (See DISCLAIMERS below.)

Fight online tracking: use a new IP address and clear your cookies/history/cache in one button.

Block third party cookies or all cookies.

Disable scripts and multimedia content that can be used to track you.

DISCLAIMERS: Web browsing is much slower than through a normal web browser due to relaying through the Tor anonymization network.

Multimedia can bypass Tor and compromise your privacy; video files and video streams are not supported and are blocked by default.

Onion Browser does not function in China, Iran, and other locations that actively block Tor with "deep packet inspection" technology. Internet providers who use such filtering/censorship technology may also prevent Onion Browser from working. If you find that the app does not work, visit the Help/Support page to see what you can do.

Onion Browser is open-source software and relies on other projects including The Tor Project and OpenSSL. Use of Onion Browser is at your own risk; sensitive data does not always belong on a mobile device. More information is always available at onionbrowser.com

Allow pasting in the bridges.torproject.org text blob to set bridges, like the Tor Browser launcher.

Allow scanning QR code from bridges.torproject.org to set bridges.

On first run, allow user to configure bridges before trying to connect to Tor.

Tor updated to 0.2.6.5-rc.

OpenSSL updated to 1.0.2a.

Redesigned "Connecting..." prompt when opening the app.

I've been using Onion Browser for 2+ years, and I can say that it's truly the BEST implementation of Tor on the iPhone, from a security standpoint. It's stable, it works (I'm looking at you, reviewer who claimed it didn't), the features that leak the most information and stray data are turned off (video and audio streaming, among other things), and Mr. Togas promptly updates OB when new versions of Tor are released.

What some are seeing are most likely the messages that indicate that a Tor site has been taken down by it's owner. These are not an indication of the browser not working, these are dead sites.

This is the only TOR client I would trust in my iPhone since it is open source, peer reviewed and been through 3rd party security audits. The reviewers that say this app doesn't work are doing something wrong (I suggest you try bridging) because I have no problem with this app, and you can even run it on top of a trustworthy VPN service to add an additional layer of security if so desired

Been a big fan but core needs to be updated to latest version. Major update promised in March has not materialized.

This is the only TBB though that's been through a security audit with a 3rd party firm. All the others are not as secure as you think.

By nature Tor browser is slow. If it doesn't work, chances are your ISP or network are blocking Tor. Not the browsers fault! Same thing would happen with any other available on the App Store

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Onion Browser on the App Store on iTunes - Apple

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Tails – Browsing the web with Tor Browser

Posted: at 5:43 pm

Tor Browser is a web browser based on Mozilla Firefox and configured to protect your anonymity. Given the popularity of Firefox, you might have used it before and its user interface is like any other modern web browser.

Some frequently asked questions about the browser can be found in the FAQ.

Here are a few things worth mentioning in the context of Tails.

Tor Browser in Tails is confined with AppArmor to protect the system and your data from some types of attack against Tor Browser. As a consequence, it can only read and write to a limited number of folders.

This is why you might face Permission denied errors, for example if you try to download files to the Home folder.

You can save files from Tor Browser to the Tor Browser folder that is located in the Home folder. The content of this folder will disappear once you shut down Tails.

If you want to upload files with Tor Browser, copy them to that folder first.

If you have activated the Personal Data persistence feature, then you can also use the Tor Browser folder that is located in the Persistent folder. In that case, the content of this folder is saved and remains available across separate working sessions.

To be able to download files larger than the available RAM, you need to activate the Personal Data persistence feature.

Using HTTPS instead of HTTP encrypts your communication while browsing the web.

All the data exchanged between your browser and the server you are visiting are encrypted. It prevents the Tor exit node to eavesdrop on your communication.

HTTPS also includes mechanisms to authenticate the server you are communicating with. But those mechanisms can be flawed, as explained on our warning page.

For example, here is how the browser looks like when we try to log in an email account at riseup.net, using their webmail interface:

Notice the padlock icon on the left of the address bar saying "mail.riseup.net" and the address beginning with "https://" (instead of "http://"). These are the indicators that an encrypted connection using HTTPS is being used.

You should try to only use services providing HTTPS when you are sending or retrieving sensitive information (like passwords), otherwise its very easy for an eavesdropper to steal whatever information you are sending or to modify the content of a page on its way to your browser.

HTTPS Everywhere is a Firefox extension included in Tor Browser and produced as a collaboration between The Tor Project and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. It encrypts your communications with a number of major websites. Many sites on the web offer some limited support for encryption over HTTPS, but make it difficult to use. For instance, they may default to unencrypted HTTP, or fill encrypted pages with links that go back to the unencrypted site. The HTTPS Everywhere extension fixes these problems by rewriting all requests to these sites to HTTPS.

To learn more about HTTPS Everywhere you can see:

Tor alone is not enough to protect your anonymity and privacy while browsing the web. All modern web browsers, such as Firefox, support JavaScript, Adobe Flash, cookies and other services which have been shown to be able to defeat the anonymity provided by the Tor network.

In Tor Browser all such features are handled from inside the browser by an extension called Torbutton which does all sorts of things to prevent the above type of attacks. But that comes at a price: since this will disable some functionalities and some sites might not work as intended.

In Tails, the circuit view of Tor Browser is disabled because we are not sure whether it would have security implications in the particular context of Tails (see #9365 and #9366). This feature is safe to use outside of Tails.

You can see the Tor circuits in the network map of Vidalia.

Having all JavaScript disabled by default would disable a lot of harmless and possibly useful JavaScript and render unusable many websites.

That's why JavaScript is enabled by default in Tor Browser.

But we rely on Torbutton to disable all potentially dangerous JavaScript.

We consider this as a necessary compromise between security and usability and as of today we are not aware of any JavaScript that would compromise Tails anonymity.

To understand better the behavior of Tor Browser, for example regarding JavaScript and cookies, you can refer to the Tor Browser design document.

You can use the security slider of Torbutton to disable browser features as a trade-off between security and usability. For example, you can use the security slider to disable JavaScript completely.

The security slider is set to low by default. This value provides the default level of protection of Torbutton and the most usable experience.

To change the value of the security slider, click on the button and choose Privacy and Security Settings.

The New Identity feature of Tor Browser:

This feature is not enough to strongly separate contextual identities in the context of Tails as the connections outside of Tor Browser are not restarted.

Shutdown and restart Tails instead.

For more details, see the design and implementation of the Tor Browser.

To allow more control over JavaScript, for example to disable JavaScript completely on some websites, Tor Browser includes the NoScript extension.

By default, NoScript is disabled and some JavaScript is allowed by the Torbutton extension as explained above.

For more information you can refer to the NoScript website and features.

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Tails - Browsing the web with Tor Browser

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