Re: [tor-relays] tor relay - vps maintenance - what to do ?
Depends on your disk encryption software - VeraCrypt on Windows supports encrypting sensitive data (including keys) in RAM. 2020-07-13 11:10 GMT, fl4co : > > >> Il giorno 13 lug 2020, alle ore 08:44, Roman Mamedov ha >> scritto: >> >> On Sun, 12 Jul 2020 21:12:31 + >> dluga...@protonmail.com wrote: >> >> The only way to protect from that, is to set up Full-disk encryption (FDE) >> on >> the VPS beforehand. But even then, it is challenging to make sure the >> decryption key is not leaked to the provider (e.g. when entering it via >> their >> "VNC Console", which can be keylogged). >> >> If you do not set up FDE, you should assume all your data on any VPS is >> accessible to the provider. Even RAM of a VPS can be copied without >> stopping >> it, so running Tor in a RAM disk (tmpfs) is not an answer either. > > I think that even with full-disk encryption, the decryption key can be > obtained from RAM. Is that correct? > > A VPS is probably not a good choice if privacy is mission critical. > > — > fl4co > > ___ > tor-relays mailing list > tor-relays@lists.torproject.org > https://lists.torproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/tor-relays > ___ tor-relays mailing list tor-relays@lists.torproject.org https://lists.torproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/tor-relays
Re: [tor-relays] tor relay - vps maintenance - what to do ?
> Il giorno 13 lug 2020, alle ore 08:44, Roman Mamedov ha > scritto: > > On Sun, 12 Jul 2020 21:12:31 + > dluga...@protonmail.com wrote: > > The only way to protect from that, is to set up Full-disk encryption (FDE) on > the VPS beforehand. But even then, it is challenging to make sure the > decryption key is not leaked to the provider (e.g. when entering it via their > "VNC Console", which can be keylogged). > > If you do not set up FDE, you should assume all your data on any VPS is > accessible to the provider. Even RAM of a VPS can be copied without stopping > it, so running Tor in a RAM disk (tmpfs) is not an answer either. I think that even with full-disk encryption, the decryption key can be obtained from RAM. Is that correct? A VPS is probably not a good choice if privacy is mission critical. — fl4co ___ tor-relays mailing list tor-relays@lists.torproject.org https://lists.torproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/tor-relays
Re: [tor-relays] tor relay - vps maintenance - what to do ?
On 7/12/20 11:12 PM, dluga...@protonmail.com wrote: > What should I do ? Consider to use offline keys - it is a good idea always. -- Toralf signature.asc Description: OpenPGP digital signature ___ tor-relays mailing list tor-relays@lists.torproject.org https://lists.torproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/tor-relays
Re: [tor-relays] tor relay - vps maintenance - what to do ?
On Sun, 12 Jul 2020 21:12:31 +
dluga...@protonmail.com wrote:
> in the next three days, my VPS provider planning to shutdown
> ("maintenanance") for 6 hours my VPS where tor relay is running (with some
> services).
>
> I suspect that my VPS will be copied and reviewed (by not authorized persons)
> afterwards.
The provider can copy and examine disks of a running VPS even without shutting
it down. They might get a few filesystem errors, but most likely nothing major
and 99% of data will be there.
The only way to protect from that, is to set up Full-disk encryption (FDE) on
the VPS beforehand. But even then, it is challenging to make sure the
decryption key is not leaked to the provider (e.g. when entering it via their
"VNC Console", which can be keylogged).
If you do not set up FDE, you should assume all your data on any VPS is
accessible to the provider. Even RAM of a VPS can be copied without stopping
it, so running Tor in a RAM disk (tmpfs) is not an answer either.
For more privacy get a dedicated server rather than a VPS. At least a server
actually must be shut down to mess with its disks, and RAM is basically out of
reach. (I believe wiretapping SATA, let alone DDR, can be ruled out as
purely theoretical, in most cases :)
Make sure that backdoors such as Intel AMT are not active though, or get a
non-Intel server.
> What should I do ?
Do not get overly paranoid, most likely it's just a maintenance and has
nothing to do with your VPS or with Tor running on it. As said above, if they
wanted your VPS' contents, they can freely get it at any time without
attracting attention.
If it was a dedicated server, then yes, a cause for concern, as it's a plenty
of time to detach your disk and copy it. For a VPS, none of that downtime is
even needed for that in the first place.
--
With respect,
Roman
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Re: [tor-relays] tor relay - vps maintenance - what to do ?
On Sun, Jul 12, 2020 at 09:12:31PM +, dluga...@protonmail.com wrote:
> in the next three days, my VPS provider planning to shutdown
> ("maintenanance") for 6 hours my VPS where tor relay is running (with some
> services). What should I do ?
>
> I suspect that my VPS will be copied and reviewed (by not authorized persons)
> afterwards. How do You react in such a situations ?
>
> I appreciate any advice.
The conservative choice would be to remove all the key material (that is,
delete the files in your DataDirectory/keys/ directory) before it shuts
down, and then start a fresh relay (with fresh keys) when it comes back.
It really comes down to how much you think they will mess with it (or
maybe even, why you think they've picked your VPS for maintenance at all).
Leaving it alone and not stressing about it, or rotating to fresh keys,
are both valid approaches. It depends how you want to approach it.
Hope that helps,
--Roger
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[tor-relays] tor relay - vps maintenance - what to do ?
Hi,
in the next three days, my VPS provider planning to shutdown ("maintenanance")
for 6 hours my VPS where tor relay is running (with some services). What should
I do ?
I suspect that my VPS will be copied and reviewed (by not authorized persons)
afterwards. How do You react in such a situations ?
I appreciate any advice.
Cheers
Dlugasny
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