Abusing privacy infrastructures: case study of Tor.

• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2047/D20283799

In the last two decades, advances in privacy-enhancing technologies, including cryptographic mechanisms, standardized security protocols, and infrastructures, have significantly improved the privacy of users. Tor, a byproduct of those primitives, emerged as a practical solution to protecting the privacy of citizens against censorship and tracking. At the same time, Tor's success encouraged illegal activities, including sophisticated botnets, ransomware, and a marketplace for drugs and contraband. The goal of this thesis is to provide mechanisms that will make detection of abusers of this valuable infrastructure possible.