Mar 08, 2023 20:00:00

'Tor version Twitter' that can tweet even under blocking / censorship by Russia is virtually abolished due to expiration of SSL certificate

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, while the Russian government is moving to block information from overseas, Twitter and major media outlets such as the BBC have launched websites dedicated to the anonymous communication system '

Tor '. reported to have opened . However, on Twitter, it became clear that the SSL certificate on the Tor-only website expired on March 6, 2023, and the Tor version of Twitter was effectively abolished.

Twitter just let its privacy- and security-protecting Tor service expire - The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/2023/3/7/23629504/twitter-tor-onion-site-security-certificate-expired

Twitter's Most Important Anti-Censorship Tool Is Currently Dead
https://www.vice.com/en/article/3ak8v8/twitters-most-important-anti-censorship-tool-is-currently-dead

Tor is a system that can anonymize the communication path by communicating through multiple nodes and can avoid censorship by the government. is.

In March 2022, it was reported that access restrictions were imposed on Twitter by the Russian government, which is trying to control information. However, in the same month, Twitter opened 'Tor version Twitter' that can avoid access restrictions and censorship by making full use of Tor, and it was possible to use Twitter even under information control by Russia.

``Tor version Twitter'' that can tweet even if it is blocked or censored from Russia has appeared, and when you actually access it, it looks like this - GIGAZINE

A Twitter spokesperson at the time said of Twitter for Tor, ``Making our services more accessible is an ongoing priority for us.''

However, when accessing the Tor version of Twitter using Brave at the time of writing the article, it is displayed that the certificate verifying the reliability of the site expired on March 6, 2023, two days ago.

Going further, I got a Twitter error page that said, 'Something went wrong, but don't fret - let's give it another shot.'

'As of March 6, 2023, the certificate has expired, which means that the Tor version of Twitter will no longer be available and will no longer be available,' said Pavel Zonev, Director of Strategic Communications for the Tor Project. It seems,” he said. Due to the suspension of Tor version Twitter, it is said that users under information control may not be able to perform basic functions such as accessing tweets and links, posting images.

Alec Muffett , a security engineer who helped launch the Tor version of Twitter, told the news media The Verge, ``Unless the current CEO Elon Mask shows interest, the Tor version of Twitter will eventually stop. I am confident it will,' he said. He also touched on the mass dismissal of Twitter employees by Mr. Mask, ``All the people who worked with me to build the Tor version of Twitter have been dismissed.''

``People who rely on the Tor version of Twitter under government information control have no way to access Twitter safely,'' Soneff said. Tor should provide some way to do that.'

In addition, Mr. Soneff and others are asking Twitter to resume the Tor version of Twitter, but at the time of writing the article, there is no prospect of resuming the Tor version of Twitter.