Anecdotally, I once tried to create an account on HN by going through tor - HN allowed my account creation to go through and even let me post my comment.
But my comment wasn't visible to anyone else.
It was all very clever.
I think the HN's simple user interface is deceptively simple - there is clearly a lot more going on than I had assumed.
I didn't realise that access to HN was blocked for Tor users, so I just thought I'd try it out. I can access the site when using Tor. I can log in to the site when using Tor. And if this comment submission works, then I guess I can comment via Tor as well...
I'm confused (HN newbie). Are you saying it's difficult to create an account here on HN?
I just created one a few days ago to comment on a different topic. It couldn't be easier, I don't think I've ever created an account as easily as here. All I did was "reply" and it kicked me into a screen to choose a name and password. That's all. No email verification or anything complicated.
I once created a throwaway on HN for something sensitive, and I happened to be on a VPN at the time. My comment started out dead and I had to vouch for it on my main account.
So I think that's just the tradeoff they make, in order for HN to be able to exist. It probably gets reversed if you email the support link.
It's worth noting that HN is among the websites that remove functionality for Tor users (eg. registration). Despite all the talk on surveillance and anonymity on here, HN does not make it possible to express opinions or reveal information under real anonymity.
Please note that HN basically works this way. Anyone can basically create an account anytime. Still HN is one of the nicest and most thoughtful places I am aware of on the internet.
How is HN anti-tor? Everyone can read your comment. Wdym by "vouching"?
Also, HN deletes your account when you them send a mail as stated in the FAQ. It always sucks to delete accounts with user comments, as it destroys context in old threads.
As spiders crawl the web humans should consider anything they post online as undeletable. If you send HN the beforementioned, there is a chance that I can still browse your posts via archive.org or google cache.
If you're afraid of doxxing, maybe make a second thought before hitting "reply".
There are several rings of anonymous HN accounts which are guarded such that anybody (who knows a bit of a trick) can use them to post whatever they like. These accounts aren't official, but grey; officially, there's not really a way to prevent such a thing.
established accounts are allowed to use tor on HN. If you make an account over tor, its posts will be killed for two weeks, then it will be a normal account.
To me, this issue looks a lot like security for security's sake. HN isn't a bank. The commercial value of a person's HN login is approximately zero. HN's editorial mechanisms make the Lulz value of a login approximately zero as well.
The real-time commercial value of a person's actual posts to HN is even less, i.e. any man in the middle who is manipulating HN comments is doing so at the expense of forgoing more profitable opportunities.
The root of the security issue is using open wireless networks, and these are vulnerable to man in the middle exploit even when SSL is used.
How will you trace him based on the HN account? All that's required to sign up is a username/password combination. Looks like reddit is the same. Generate a random password and access them via tor to not get your IP logged and there isn't much to go on.
But my comment wasn't visible to anyone else.
It was all very clever.
I think the HN's simple user interface is deceptively simple - there is clearly a lot more going on than I had assumed.
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