Anonym.Os
Hi Fred, I occasionally read about people wrestling with the difficulty of near-anonymous surfing in your newsletter so I wanted to contribute a link to a new free live CD that offers the best solution that I know. Check out drkaos' OpenBSD Anonym.OS at http://sourceforge.net/projects/anonym-os . Extremely easy to use with Firefox already configured for Tor and Privoxy (transparent to the user). Just load the CD, answer a few questions then surf anonymously. Best regards, Tony Brezovski
P.S. Great newsletter--the PLUS edition has to be one of the best buys on the 'net.
Thanks, Tony. Anonym.OS is a "hardened" OS that could be convenient to use, especially in some of the cybercafe, hotspot, or public PC scenarios we've discussed recently: The OS is resistant to tampering from outside, and encrypts and anonymizes all outbound communication.
Of course, it's still not proof against hardware-level snooping--- hardware-based keystroke loggers still would work, for example. And IP-address camouflaging anonymizers can't hide you from someone who really, really wants to know from where your packets are originating: Anonymizers can only add a layer or two of misdirection. In one famous instance, a popular Scandinavian anonymizer service was slapped with legal papers, and the owner had to turn over his server's records. This provided the missing link between the originating users and the sites they visited or sent messages to; which allowed the authorities to connect the dots of who sent what.
None of which is to suggest that anonymizers--- local or distant--- are worthless. But they're not magic: They can make it harder for someone to track stuff back to you, but are a thin shield at best.
Public PCs and wifi hotspots cannot be made truly secure. You still need to use caution, even with anonymizers, encryption, and all the other tools available.
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