Robert - 6/8/24

Why anonymity isn’t enough for sensitive use

In this post we are going to see why anonymity is not enough for sensitive use, and what can be done about it.

Why anonymity is not enough for sensitive use

Let’s say Charlie is running a popular online platform with total free speech. To avoid being held liable for the content published on it, he makes sure to always be anonymous and private by using only open-source software and connecting to the site only through Tor and VPN.

One day Charlie posts a link to a scientific paper from his anonymous “Founder” account on the platform. His followers see an uncanny similarity in the language used by the paper’s authors with the founder’s anonymous account. The government uses its key disclosure legislation to issue search warrants for the authors’ hard drives.

Thankfully, Charlie needn’t worry: he has set up VeraCrypt’s deniable encryption to divide his personal and scientific life from the website he’s running. He gives the authorities the key to the main volume; there are no further questions.