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Tor Education

Tor is a free, volunteer-run network that hides your real IP address from the websites you visit. This hub explains how onion routing works, how to download Tor Browser safely, and — just as importantly — what Tor cannot hide.

By Abdul Hannan · Published 2026-11-14 · Last updated 2026-11-14

What Tor is

Tor — short for "The Onion Router" — is a network of volunteer-run servers, called relays, that pass your internet traffic between each other before it reaches its destination. The Tor Project, a non-profit, maintains it; journalists, activists and ordinary people use it for privacy — and, like any privacy tool, it can also be misused. This site explains the technology and its limits; nothing here helps anyone do anything illegal with it.

How onion routing works

Your connection is wrapped in layers, like an onion — hence the name. Instead of going straight to a website, your traffic passes through three relays — entry, middle, and exit — and each relay peels off only one layer, learning only what it needs to pass the traffic on.

• The entry relay knows who you are — your real IP address — but not where you are going.
• The middle relay knows neither — it only passes traffic from the entry relay to the exit relay.
• The exit relay knows the destination, not who you are.

Your provider sees you are using Tor, not what you do after that; the website sees the exit relay, not you. Tor builds a new three-relay path — a circuit — for different sites, so your visits are not all tied together.

Tor Browser

Tor Browser is the Tor Project's own web browser, based on Firefox, with Tor built in. It routes all traffic through Tor automatically, and resists tracking: it blocks many trackers, discourages fingerprinting by making browsers look alike, and is designed to be used without extensions — extras can make your browser more identifiable. You do not need a VPN to use it, and adding one does not automatically make it safer.

Onion services

An onion service is a website or service that lives inside the Tor network itself, reached through Tor Browser by a special .onion address. The connection never leaves the Tor network, so there is no exit relay — both sides are protected by Tor's relay design. They are used for privacy-focused email, whistleblowing platforms, libraries, and forums for people under censorship. This site does not publish a directory of them and does not link to any — the point is explaining how they work, not where to find them.

How to download Tor Browser safely

There is one official source: torproject.org. Download only from there — never from a search ad, a third-party site, or a link someone sends you. On desktop, verify the download before running it: the Tor Project publishes a .asc signature for every installer, signed with the Tor Browser Developers OpenPGP key, so you can check the file is genuine. The steps are on torproject.org — follow them there.

On Android, get it from the Google Play Store, F-Droid, or the Tor Project website through GetTor. On iOS there is no official Tor Browser — the Tor Project points iOS users to Onion Browser, a separate app. If any site asks you to pay for it, it is not the real thing: the genuine browser is free.

What Tor can and cannot hide

Tor hides your real IP address from websites and which sites you visit from your provider — a real, useful protection. What it does not hide is your behaviour: log in to an account and the site knows who you are; download a file and it may carry information about you; enable scripts or plugins and they can leak details Tor was hiding. A malicious exit relay can see unencrypted traffic leaving the network, so look for https. Tor is slow by design — three hops, often on volunteer hardware. Tor improves privacy. It does not guarantee anonymity, and anyone who tells you otherwise is selling you something.

Who runs Tor

Tor runs on relays operated by volunteers and organisations around the world, donating bandwidth and server time. The Tor Project coordinates it; nobody owns it, and no one person or company can see all of it. The exact number changes constantly, and published counts disagree, so this site does not quote one — the count is not the point. The point is the design: trust spread across many independent relays, so no one relay and no one observer has the whole picture.

Where to go next

What Tor is used to reach — the dark web, the deep web, and the myths around them — is in our Dark Web hub. The wider privacy picture, including what a VPN hides and does not hide, is in Online Privacy. The safety rules that apply to everything you do online are in the Online Safety Center. Full guides on onion routing, circuits and Tor Browser setup are being written now and will appear here as they are published and checked.

Frequently asked questions

Is Tor legal?

Using Tor is legal in most countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union. A few countries restrict or block it, and laws change — check your local law before using it. Tor is a privacy tool; what you do with it is what the law judges.

Is Tor Browser free?

Yes. Tor Browser is free software published by the Tor Project, a non-profit organisation. If any site asks you to pay for Tor Browser, it is not the official source — download it only from torproject.org.

Does Tor hide my browsing from my internet provider?

Partly. Your internet provider can see that you are using Tor, but not which sites you visit through it. The website you visit sees the Tor exit relay, not your real address. But logging in, downloading files or enabling scripts can still identify you.

Can I use Tor on my phone?

Yes, with limits. On Android, get Tor Browser from the Google Play Store, F-Droid, or the Tor Project website (GetTor). On iOS there is no official Tor Browser — the Tor Project points iOS users to Onion Browser, a separate app. A phone running Tor is still not a guarantee of anonymity.