# apt-transport-tor Easily install Debian packages via [Tor](https://www.torproject.org). This package implements an APT "acquire method" that handles URLs starting with "tor+http://" or "tor+https://" in your sources.list. ## Usage Edit your /etc/apt/sources.list like so, adjusting the suite/components appropriately for your system: deb tor+http://deb.debian.org/debian unstable main deb-src tor+http://deb.debian.org/debian unstable main Note that [deb.debian.org](https://deb.debian.org/) is backed by a set of commercial [CDN](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Content_delivery_network)s, so that you will likely be served by one of their servers close (in network terms) to the exit node of your connection automatically. You can of course use any other Debian mirror from the extensive [mirror list](https://debian.org/mirror/list), but that might result in a connection "across the globe" if the choosen exit node is far away from the mirror causing slower connection speeds. Alternatively, if you have the Tor onion service address of a Debian mirror, you can use that to have your traffic never leave the Tor network: deb tor+http://.onion/debian unstable main deb-src tor+http://.onion/debian unstable main ## APT repositories as onion services While apt sends no directly identifying information to mirrors the download of metadata like the Translation files as well as individual package names can potentially reveal information about a user an adversary could observe. If this is a concern, some APT repositories are available as onion services which means the information doesn't leave the Tor network via an exit node: Debian Project: [Complete List](https://onion.debian.org) [Announcement](https://bits.debian.org/2016/08/debian-and-tor-services-available-as-onion-services.html) * ftp.debian.org: tor+http://vwakviie2ienjx6t.onion/ * security.debian.org: tor+http://sgvtcaew4bxjd7ln.onion/ * people.debian.org: tor+http://hd37oiauf5uoz7gg.onion/ * debug.mirrors.debian.org: tor+http://ktqxbqrhg5ai2c7f.onion/ * incoming.debian.org: tor+http://oscbw3h7wrfxqi4m.onion/ * ftp.ports.debian.org: tor+http://nbybwh4atabu6xq3.onion/ * incoming.ports.debian.org: tor+http://vyrxto4jsgoxvilf.onion/ Tor Project: [Complete List](https://onion.torproject.org/) [Announcement](https://blog.torproject.org/blog/debian-and-tor-services-available-onion-services) * deb.torproject.org: tor+http://sdscoq7snqtznauu.onion/ Note that this list might not be current: Verify before use! The list is provided only to showcase that many commonly used repositories are already available as an onion service. ## Configuration ### Using a different Tor instance By default, apt-transport-tor uses the following SOCKS proxy setting, which is the default location of a locally installed Tor instance: Acquire::tor::proxy "socks5h://apt-transport-tor@localhost:9050"; Note the use of a username to make use of the default IsolateSOCKSAuth Tor setting for stream isolation, which requires Tor 0.2.4.19 to work well. This means your apt traffic will be sent over a different circuit from your regular Tor traffic and for each host you connect to. ### Disabling use of http(s) without Tor in APT APT >= 1.3 allows methods to be disabled without removing them from the system, so to avoid mistakenly adding new sources without using tor you can tell apt via the following configuration options to fail for non-tor-http(s) sources: Dir::Bin::Methods::http "false"; Dir::Bin::Methods::https "false"; ## Caveats Downloading your Debian packages over Tor prevents an attacker who is sniffing your network connection from being able to tell which packages you are fetching, or even that your traffic is Debian-related. However, this does not necessarily defend you from, amongst other things: * a global passive adversary (who could potentially correlate the exit node's traffic with your local Tor traffic) * an attacker looking at the size of your downloads, and making an educated guess about the contents * an attacker who has broken into your machine Download speeds will be slower via Tor. ## Trademark, Copyright & Licensing This product is produced independently from the Tor® anonymity software and carries no guarantee from [The Tor Project](https://www.torproject.org) about quality, suitability or anything else. Copyright (C) 2014 Tim Retout Copyright (C) 2016 David Kalnischkies License: This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version. This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details. You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin St, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301, USA. ## Feedback Comments and suggestions to: [APT developer mailinglist](mailto:deity@lists.debian.org) ([archive](https://lists.debian.org/deity/)) Bug reports should be sent to the Debian BTS.