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Hacking. Disinformation. Surveillance. CYBER is Motherboard's podcast and reporting on the dark underbelly of the internet.
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Twitter launched its onion site in March 2022, the same month Russia blocked access to Twitter and as the country started its invasion of Ukraine. As Motherboard said at the time, it stood to be one of the most significant Tor onion services ever launched, one that could genuinely help people access a site that has become a news service, emergency communications platform, and social network all in one. A Twitter spokesperson said at the time of launch that “Making our service more accessible is an ongoing priority for us.”Twitter’s onion service going down is not surprising given that the basic functioning of the site is under threat, with users unable to visit links or post photos on Monday.Twitter may turn its Tor onion service back on. Zoneff said the Tor Project has contacted Twitter about the issue. For the moment, the site remains inaccessible.“People who rely on onion services for an extra layer of protection and guarantee that they are accessing the content they are looking for now have one fewer way of doing so safely. That's why we feel it necessary to highlight all the ways in which Tor supports a community of global internet users in accessing information freely and safely,” Zoneff said.Do you know anything else about the shutdown of Twitter’s Tor onion service? We'd love to hear from you. Using a non-work phone or computer, you can contact Joseph Cox securely on Signal on +44 20 8133 5190, Wickr on josephcox, or email [email protected].
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