Twitter is creating a Tor onion service, which will optimize the site for the privacy-protecting and censorship-avoiding network. Alec Muffett, a software programmer, shared the story on Twitter, calling it “probably the most significant and long-awaited tweet he has ever posted.” Tor is also being added to Twitter’s list of approved browsers.
When using Tor Browser or perhaps a similar tool, you can access Twitter’s onion service at https://twitter3e4tixl4xyajtrzo62zg5vztmjuricljdp2c5kshju4avyoid.onion. While you could already use Tor to view Twitter’s regular website, the newly unveiled version adds further levels of security to the already anonymous browsing and is tailored to the network.
Hidden services or “dark web” services are terms used to describe onion services, but the latter term usually refers to illicit sites like the Silk Road drug market. The DuckDuckGo web browser, as well as news outlets including The New York Times, the BBC, and ProPublica, all, have Tor-specific versions.
Since 2014, Muffett, who works with businesses to deploy onion sites, has been considering the idea of a Tor-friendly Twitter.
Yesterday, Anonymous raised a question on Twitter regarding Tor Onion’s compatibility with Tweetdeck.
Hey @Twitter, @TwitterSupport. Any chance you can get a Tor onion working with tweetdeck as well?
— Anonymous (@YourAnonNews) April 18, 2022
And it seems that Tor Onion is not that much compatible with Tweetdeck.
Twitter’s onion system has been under development for much longer and offers benefits beyond simply accessing a prohibited network. It requires individuals to utilize Tor’s network because it doesn’t operate with regular browsers and protects them from some of the security dangers that standard web addresses offer.
Having a separate access path also makes it easier for platforms like Twitter to monitor criminal activity that uses Tor without restricting or downgrading service for good-faith users. Even if the majority of users don’t use Tor to access Twitter, it’s a step forward for those who do — and a step toward wider acceptance of the system.
