Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Opens Online Portal on Tor for Overseas Users
The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has launched a virtual reception office on the darknet (the “shadow” internet), specifically for users outside of Russia. This was first reported by the “Current Time” channel, which noted that the portal actually opened back in December of the previous year.
According to the SVR’s announcement: “If you are outside of Russia and possess important information about threats to the security of the Russian Federation, you can send it to us safely and anonymously through the service’s virtual reception office on the Tor network.”
“Current Time” claims this is the first darknet reception office among all European intelligence agencies, based on their review of agency websites. The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) created a full copy of its website on the darknet in May 2019.
How to Submit Information Securely and Anonymously
The SVR provides instructions for submitting data securely and anonymously:
- Download the Tor browser or the Tails operating system (both encrypt internet traffic and route it through three random nodes, which can be located anywhere in the world).
- Visit the reception office’s site in the .onion domain, enter a verification code, and copy five random English words (these will serve as a passphrase for further communication with the agency).
After this, a form opens allowing users to send files up to a total of 15 megabytes and text of virtually any length. For additional protection, the SVR recommends encrypting your message with PGP (Pretty Good Privacy), which turns regular text into a random string of characters. Third parties cannot read the correspondence, even if they gain access to it. The legitimate recipient—in this case, the SVR—can decrypt the message using their cryptographic key.
Testing the Portal’s Functionality
A “Current Time” correspondent tested the portal and confirmed that it is possible to send files up to 15 megabytes and text of any length (journalists even sent the entire text of “War and Peace” to the SVR).
Risks for Tor Node Administrators in Russia
It’s important to note that in Russia itself, Tor node administrators face significant risks, as they may fall under suspicion if their IP address appears in online crime investigations. This happened to mathematician Dmitry Bogatov, who spent a long time in pre-trial detention and has since moved to the United States. On one forum, a user under the pseudonym “Ayrat Bashirov” posted messages that authorities considered calls for extremism and mass unrest. “Bashirov” accessed the forum via Tor, using it as an anonymizer, and in several cases, Bogatov’s network address appeared because the connection to the anonymous network went through his node. Despite having a solid alibi, Bogatov was arrested and a criminal case was opened against him. Although the case was later closed, Bogatov decided not to remain in Russia and left the country with his wife.
Additional Information
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