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Identifying and Characterizing Sybils in the Tor Network

Author(s): Winter, Philipp; Ensafi, Roya; Loesing, Karsten; Feamster, Nick

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dc.contributor.authorWinter, Philipp-
dc.contributor.authorEnsafi, Roya-
dc.contributor.authorLoesing, Karsten-
dc.contributor.authorFeamster, Nick-
dc.date.accessioned2021-10-08T19:49:17Z-
dc.date.available2021-10-08T19:49:17Z-
dc.date.issued2016en_US
dc.identifier.citationWinter, Philipp, Roya Ensafi, Karsten Loesing, and Nick Feamster. "Identifying and Characterizing Sybils in the Tor Network." In 25th USENIX Security Symposium (2016): pp. 1169-1185.en_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://www.usenix.org/system/files/conference/usenixsecurity16/sec16_paper_winter.pdf-
dc.identifier.urihttp://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/pr15v87-
dc.description.abstractBeing a volunteer-run, distributed anonymity network, Tor is vulnerable to Sybil attacks. Little is known about real-world Sybils in the Tor network, and we lack practical tools and methods to expose Sybil attacks. In this work, we develop sybilhunter, a system for detecting Sybil relays based on their appearance, such as configuration; and behavior, such as uptime sequences. We used sybilhunter’s diverse analysis techniques to analyze nine years of archived Tor network data, providing us with new insights into the operation of real-world attackers. Our findings include diverse Sybils, ranging from botnets, to academic research, and relays that hijacked Bitcoin transactions. Our work shows that existing Sybil defenses do not apply to Tor, it delivers insights into realworld attacks, and provides practical tools to uncover and characterize Sybils, making the network safer for its users.en_US
dc.format.extent1169 - 1185en_US
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.relation.ispartof25th USENIX Security Symposiumen_US
dc.rightsFinal published version. This is an open access article.en_US
dc.titleIdentifying and Characterizing Sybils in the Tor Networken_US
dc.typeConference Articleen_US
pu.type.symplectichttp://www.symplectic.co.uk/publications/atom-terms/1.0/conference-proceedingen_US

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