Tor website says "tor browser bundle" is enough if only browsing is required. Is it also equally safe to use for downloading purpose ?
6
-
What they mean is, as long as you only need www access, it'll do fine. Many people use other internet programs, e.g., ssh for remote access. But you'd need a different installation of Tor to get that working, because you can't do it from a browser.– jpaughCommented Jun 8, 2013 at 18:38
-
That is, if you do it from their browser, it should be just as safe as doing something else from their browser.– jpaughCommented Jun 8, 2013 at 18:40
-
Are you saying it is equallly safe for downloading as well ?– tfbCommented Jun 8, 2013 at 18:40
-
Yes. As long as you use Tor browser to do it. Downloading is still web (www) browsing. It doesn't make a difference whether you read it or store it.– jpaughCommented Jun 8, 2013 at 18:41
-
3Please don't download excessively large files, though, as this will slow down the whole Tor network & inconvenience the people who really need it (political dissidents in oppressive countries).– evilsoupCommented Jun 8, 2013 at 18:54
|
Show 1 more comment
1 Answer
Anything you do from a web browser is (technically) web browsing. So, downloading counts as web browsing. What the Tor website (probably) means in this case is that if you want to do something which your browser is incapable of doing — such as a remote desktop session, through e.g. rdb, vnc or ssh protocols, you'll have to set up Tor to work more generally, so that programs implementing these protocols can use it.
However, if you go for the Tor browser option, your actions in other programs will not be protected. Notably, if you use an alternate browser, it will not be protected.
