The Invisible Internet Project (I2P) is an anonymous network layer (implemented as a
mix network
Mix networks are routing protocols that create hard-to-trace communications by using a chain of proxy servers known as ''mixes'' which take in messages from multiple senders, shuffle them, and send them back out in random order to the next desti ...
) that allows for
censorship-resistant,
peer-to-peer
Peer-to-peer (P2P) computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads between peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the network. They are said to form a peer-to-peer n ...
communication. Anonymous connections are achieved by
encrypting
In cryptography, encryption is the process of Code, encoding information. This process converts the original representation of the information, known as plaintext, into an alternative form known as ciphertext. Ideally, only authorized parties can ...
the user's traffic (by using
end-to-end encryption
End-to-end encryption (E2EE) is a system of communication where only the communicating users can read the messages. In principle, it prevents potential eavesdroppers – including telecommunications service providers, telecom providers, Internet ...
), and sending it through a volunteer-run network of roughly 55,000 computers distributed around the world. Given the high number of possible paths the traffic can transit, a third party watching a full connection is unlikely. The software that
implements this layer is called an "I2P
router", and a computer running I2P is called an "I2P
node
In general, a node is a localized swelling (a "knot") or a point of intersection (a vertex).
Node may refer to:
In mathematics
*Vertex (graph theory), a vertex in a mathematical graph
*Vertex (geometry), a point where two or more curves, lines, ...
". I2P is
free and
open sourced, and is published under multiple
licenses
A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit).
A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...
.
Technical design
I2P is
beta
Beta (, ; uppercase , lowercase , or cursive ; grc, βῆτα, bē̂ta or ell, βήτα, víta) is the second letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 2. In Modern Greek, it represents the voiced labiod ...
software since 2003, when it started as a fork of
Freenet
Freenet is a peer-to-peer platform for censorship-resistant, anonymous communication. It uses a decentralized distributed data store to keep and deliver information, and has a suite of free software for publishing and communicating on the Web ...
.
The software's developers emphasize that
bugs are likely to occur in the beta version and that
peer review
Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people with similar competencies as the producers of the work (peers). It functions as a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field. Peer review ...
has been insufficient to date. However, they believe the code is now reasonably stable and well-developed, and more exposure can help the development of I2P.
The network is strictly message-based, like
IP, but a
library
A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...
is available to allow reliable
streaming
Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content it ...
communication on top of it (similar to
TCP, although from version 0.6, a new
UDP-based
SSU transport is used). All communication is end-to-end encrypted (in total, four layers of encryption are used when sending a message) through
garlic routing
Garlic routing is a variant of onion routing that encrypts multiple messages together to make it more difficult for attackers to perform traffic analysis and to increase the speed of data transfer.
Michael J. Freedman defined "garlic routing" as ...
, and even the
end points ("destinations") are
cryptographic
Cryptography, or cryptology (from grc, , translit=kryptós "hidden, secret"; and ''graphein'', "to write", or '' -logia'', "study", respectively), is the practice and study of techniques for secure communication in the presence of adve ...
identifiers (essentially a pair of
public key
Public-key cryptography, or asymmetric cryptography, is the field of cryptographic systems that use pairs of related keys. Each key pair consists of a public key and a corresponding private key. Key pairs are generated with cryptographic alg ...
s), so that neither senders nor recipients of messages need to reveal their
IP address
An Internet Protocol address (IP address) is a numerical label such as that is connected to a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication.. Updated by . An IP address serves two main functions: network interface ident ...
to the other side or to third-party observers.
Although many developers had been a part of the Invisible IRC Project (IIP) and
Freenet
Freenet is a peer-to-peer platform for censorship-resistant, anonymous communication. It uses a decentralized distributed data store to keep and deliver information, and has a suite of free software for publishing and communicating on the Web ...
communities, significant differences exist between their designs and concepts. IIP was an anonymous centralized
IRC
Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a text-based chat system for instant messaging. IRC is designed for group communication in discussion forums, called '' channels'', but also allows one-on-one communication via private messages as well as chat an ...
server. Freenet is a
censorship
Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...
-resistant
distributed data store
A distributed data store is a computer network where information is stored on more than one node, often in a replicated fashion. It is usually specifically used to refer to either a distributed database where users store information on a ''numb ...
. I2P is an
anonymous peer-to-peer distributed communication layer designed to run ''any'' traditional internet service (e.g.
Usenet
Usenet () is a worldwide distributed discussion system available on computers. It was developed from the general-purpose Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP) dial-up network architecture. Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979, and it was ...
,
email
Electronic mail (email or e-mail) is a method of exchanging messages ("mail") between people using electronic devices. Email was thus conceived as the electronic ( digital) version of, or counterpart to, mail, at a time when "mail" meant ...
,
IRC
Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a text-based chat system for instant messaging. IRC is designed for group communication in discussion forums, called '' channels'', but also allows one-on-one communication via private messages as well as chat an ...
,
file sharing
File sharing is the practice of distributing or providing access to digital media, such as computer programs, multimedia (audio, images and video), documents or electronic books. Common methods of storage, transmission and dispersion include r ...
,
Web hosting
A web hosting service is a type of Internet hosting service that hosts websites for clients, i.e. it offers the facilities required for them to create and maintain a site and makes it accessible on the World Wide Web. Companies providing web h ...
and
HTTP
The Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is an application layer protocol in the Internet protocol suite model for distributed, collaborative, hypermedia information systems. HTTP is the foundation of data communication for the World Wide Web, ...
, or
Telnet
Telnet is an application protocol used on the Internet or local area network to provide a bidirectional interactive text-oriented communication facility using a virtual terminal connection. User data is interspersed in-band with Telnet control i ...
), as well as more traditional distributed applications (e.g. a distributed data store, a
web proxy
In computer networking, a proxy server is a server application that acts as an intermediary between a client requesting a resource and the server providing that resource.
Instead of connecting directly to a server that can fulfill a request ...
network using
Squid
True squid are molluscs with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight arms, and two tentacles in the superorder Decapodiformes, though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also called squid despite not strictly fitting t ...
, or
DNS
The Domain Name System (DNS) is a hierarchical and distributed naming system for computers, services, and other resources in the Internet or other Internet Protocol (IP) networks. It associates various information with domain names assigned to ...
).
Many developers of I2P are known only under
pseudonyms. While the previous main developer, ''
jrandom'', is currently on hiatus, others, such as ''zzz'', ''killyourtv'', and ''Complication'' have continued to lead development efforts, and are assisted by numerous contributors.
I2P uses 2048bit
ElGamal
In cryptography, the ElGamal encryption system is an asymmetric key encryption algorithm for public-key cryptography which is based on the Diffie–Hellman key exchange. It was described by Taher Elgamal in 1985. ElGamal encryption is used in th ...
/
AES256
The Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), also known by its original name Rijndael (), is a specification for the encryption of electronic data established by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 2001.
AES is a variant ...
/
SHA256
SHA-2 (Secure Hash Algorithm 2) is a set of cryptographic hash functions designed by the United States National Security Agency (NSA) and first published in 2001. They are built using the Merkle–Damgård construction, from a one-way compression ...
+Session Tags encryption and
Ed25519
In public-key cryptography, Edwards-curve Digital Signature Algorithm (EdDSA) is a digital signature scheme using a variant of Schnorr signature based on twisted Edwards curves.
It is designed to be faster than existing digital signature scheme ...
EdDSA
In public-key cryptography, Edwards-curve Digital Signature Algorithm (EdDSA) is a digital signature scheme using a variant of Schnorr signature based on twisted Edwards curves.
It is designed to be faster than existing digital signature scheme ...
/
ECDSA
In cryptography, the Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (ECDSA) offers a variant of the Digital Signature Algorithm (DSA) which uses elliptic-curve cryptography.
Key and signature-size
As with elliptic-curve cryptography in general, the b ...
signatures
A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a Handwriting, handwritten (and often Stylization, stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and ...
.
Releases
I2P has had a stable release every six to eight weeks. Updates are distributed via I2P torrents and are signed by the release manager (generally ''zzz'' or ''str4d'').
Funding
On the website it states, that "funding for I2P comes entirely from donations". Admins and managers of the project said, that "the core project itself doesn't take donations". These should instead should go to secondary applications or be spent on hiring others, to work on I2P. Support for the
onboarding
''Onboarding'' or organizational socialization is the mechanism through which new employees acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and behaviors in order to become effective organizational members and insiders. In the United States, for example ...
for I2P came from the ''
Open Technology Fund
The Open Technology Fund (OTF) is an American nonprofit corporation that aims to support global Internet freedom technologies. Its mission is to "support open technologies and communities that increase free expression, circumvent censorship, and ...
''. In contrast to ''
The Tor Project
The Tor Project, Inc. is a Seattle-based 501(c)(3) research-education nonprofit organization founded by computer scientists Roger Dingledine, Nick Mathewson and five others. The Tor Project is primarily responsible for maintaining software for ...
'', I2p has "not the financial or legal infrastructure to support a network of
exit nodes". The reseed servers, a sort of bootstrap nodes, which connect the user with the initial set of peers to join the I2P-network, should be run by volunteers.
Software
![I2P_router_console_0](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/I2P_router_console_0.9.31-0.png)
Since I2P is an anonymizing
network layer
In the seven-layer OSI model of computer networking, the network layer is layer 3. The network layer is responsible for packet forwarding including routing through intermediate routers.
Functions
The network layer provides the means of transfe ...
, it is designed so other software can use it for anonymous communication. As such, there are a variety of tools currently available for I2P or in development.
The I2P
router is controlled through the router console, which is a web frontend accessed through a web browser.
General networking
* ''I2PTunnel'' is an application embedded into I2P that allows arbitrary TCP/IP applications to communicate over I2P by setting up "
tunnels
A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A Pipeline transport, pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used ...
" which can be accessed by connecting to pre-determined ports on
localhost
In computer networking, localhost is a hostname that refers to the current device used to access it. It is used to access the network services that are running on the host via the loopback network interface. Using the loopback interface bypasses a ...
.
* ''SAM'' (''Simple Anonymous Messaging'') is a
protocol
Protocol may refer to:
Sociology and politics
* Protocol (politics), a formal agreement between nation states
* Protocol (diplomacy), the etiquette of diplomacy and affairs of state
* Etiquette, a code of personal behavior
Science and technolog ...
which allows a client application written in any
programming language
A programming language is a system of notation for writing computer programs. Most programming languages are text-based formal languages, but they may also be graphical. They are a kind of computer language.
The description of a programming ...
to communicate over I2P, by using a socket-based interface to the I2P router.
* ''BOB'' (''Basic Open Bridge'') is a less complex app to router protocol similar to "SAM"
* ''Orchid'' Outproxy
Tor
Tor, TOR or ToR may refer to:
Places
* Tor, Pallars, a village in Spain
* Tor, former name of Sloviansk, Ukraine, a city
* Mount Tor, Tasmania, Australia, an extinct volcano
* Tor Bay, Devon, England
* Tor River, Western New Guinea, Indonesia
Sc ...
plugin
Chat
* Any
IRC client
Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a text-based chat system for instant messaging. IRC is designed for group communication in discussion forums, called ''channels'', but also allows one-on-one communication via private messages as well as chat an ...
made for the Internet Relay Chat can work, once connected to the I2P
IRC server
An IRCd, short for Internet Relay Chat daemon, is server software that implements the IRC protocol, enabling people to talk to each other via the Internet (exchanging textual messages in real time). It is distinct from an IRC bot that connects out ...
(on localhost). I2P have the option to create tunnels that are specific for this usage, where certain commands that could de-anonymize the user are filtered out.
File sharing
* Several programs provide
BitTorrent functionality for use within the I2P network. Users cannot connect to non-I2P torrents or peers from within I2P, nor can they connect to I2P torrents or peers from outside I2P. ''
I2PSnark'', included in the I2P install package, is a port of the BitTorrent client named Snark. ''
Vuze
Vuze (previously Azureus) is a BitTorrent client used to transfer files via the BitTorrent protocol. Vuze is written in Java, and uses the Azureus Engine. In addition to downloading data linked to .torrent files, Azureus allows users to view, p ...
'', formerly known as Azureus, is a
BitTorrent client
The following is a general comparison of BitTorrent clients, which are computer programs designed for peer-to-peer file sharing using the BitTorrent protocol.
The BitTorrent protocol coordinates segmented file transfer among peers connected ...
that includes a plugin for I2P, allowing anonymous swarming through this network. This plugin is still in an early stage of development, however it is already fairly stable. ''I2P-BT'' is a BitTorrent client for I2P that allows anonymous swarming for
file sharing
File sharing is the practice of distributing or providing access to digital media, such as computer programs, multimedia (audio, images and video), documents or electronic books. Common methods of storage, transmission and dispersion include r ...
. This client is a modified version of the original BitTorrent 3.4.2 program which runs on
MS Windows and most dialects of
Unix
Unix (; trademarked as UNIX) is a family of multitasking, multiuser computer operating systems that derive from the original AT&T Unix, whose development started in 1969 at the Bell Labs research center by Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, and ot ...
in a GUI and command-line environment. It was developed by the individual known as 'duck' on I2P in cooperation with 'smeghead'. It is no longer being actively developed; however, there is a small effort to upgrade the I2P-BT client up to par with the BitTorrent 4.0 release. ''I2PRufus'' is an I2P port of the Rufus BitTorrent client.
Robert (P2P Software)
The Invisible Internet Project (I2P) is an anonymous network layer (implemented as a mix network) that allows for Internet censorship circumvention, censorship-resistant, peer-to-peer communication. Anonymous connections are achieved by Encryp ...
is the most actively maintained I2PRufus fork. XD is a standalone BitTorrent client written in Go. BiglyBT is a bittorrent client based on Vuze which also allows the use of i2p for downloading/seeding.
* Two
Kad network
The Kad network is a peer-to-peer (P2P) network which implements the Kademlia P2P overlay protocol. The majority of users on the Kad Network are also connected to servers on the eDonkey network, and Kad Network clients typically query known node ...
clients exist for the I2P network, ''iMule'' and ''Nachtblitz''. iMule (''invisible Mule'') is a port of
eMule
eMule is a free peer-to-peer file sharing application for Microsoft Windows. Started in May 2002 as an alternative to eDonkey2000, eMule now connects to both the eDonkey network and the Kad network. The distinguishing features of eMule are ...
for I2P network. iMule has not been developed since 2013. iMule is made for anonymous file sharing. In contrast to other
eDonkey clients, iMule only uses the
Kademlia
Kademlia is a distributed hash table for decentralized peer-to-peer computer networks designed by Petar Maymounkov and David Mazières in 2002. It specifies the structure of the network and the exchange of information through node lookups. Kademl ...
for proceeding to connect through I2P network, so no servers are needed. ''
Nachtblitz'' is a custom client built on the .NET Framework. The latest version is 1.4.27, released on March 23, 2016. Nachtblitz includes a time lock to disable the software one year after its release date.
*
I2Phex
Phex is a peer-to-peer file sharing client for the gnutella network, released under the terms of the GNU General Public License, so Phex is free software. Phex is based on Java SE 5.0 or later.
Features
Phex supports most of the recent feature ...
is a port of the popular
Gnutella
Gnutella is a peer-to-peer network protocol. Founded in 2000, it was the first decentralized peer-to-peer network of its kind, leading to other, later networks adopting the model.
In June 2005, Gnutella's population was 1.81 million computer ...
client
Phex
Phex is a peer-to-peer file sharing client for the gnutella network, released under the terms of the GNU General Public License, so Phex is free software. Phex is based on Java SE 5.0 or later.
Features
Phex supports most of the recent feature ...
to I2P. It is stable and fairly functional.
*
Tahoe-LAFS
Tahoe-LAFS (Tahoe Least-Authority File Store) is a free and open, secure, decentralized, fault-tolerant, distributed data store and distributed file system. It can be used as an online backup system, or to serve as a file or Web host similar to ...
has been ported to I2P. This allows for files to be anonymously stored in Tahoe-LAFS grids.
*MuWire is a file-sharing program inspired by the LimeWire Gnutella client that works atop the I2P network.
Bridging to clearnet
Currently, Vuze and BiglyBT are the torrent clients that make
clearnet (connections not through I2P) torrents available on I2P and vice versa. Depending on the client settings, torrents from the internet can be made available on I2P (via announcements to I2P's DHT network) and torrents from I2P can be made available to the internet. For this reason, torrents previously published only on I2P can be made available to the entire Internet, and users of I2P can often download popular content from the Internet while maintaining the anonymity of I2P. As of August 2022 the default outproxy is exit.stormycloud.i2p which is run by
StormyCloud Inc
Email
![I2PBote-inbox-0](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/I2PBote-inbox-0.4.png)
* ''I2P-Bote
GitHub') is a free, fully
decentralized
Decentralization or decentralisation is the process by which the activities of an organization, particularly those regarding planning and decision making, are distributed or delegated away from a central, authoritative location or group.
Conce ...
and distributed anonymous email system with a strong focus on security. It supports multiple identities and does not expose email
metadata
Metadata is "data that provides information about other data", but not the content of the data, such as the text of a message or the image itself. There are many distinct types of metadata, including:
* Descriptive metadata – the descriptive ...
. , it is still considered
beta software
A software release life cycle is the sum of the stages of development and maturity for a piece of computer software ranging from its initial development to its eventual release, and including updated versions of the released version to help impro ...
. I2P-Bote is accessible via the I2P
web console interface or using standard email protocols (i.e.
IMAP
In computing, the Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) is an Internet standard protocol used by email clients to retrieve email messages from a mail server over a TCP/IP connection. IMAP is defined by .
IMAP was designed with the goal of per ...
/
SMTP
The Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) is an Internet standard communication protocol for electronic mail transmission. Mail servers and other message transfer agents use SMTP to send and receive mail messages. User-level email clients typical ...
). All bote-mails are transparently end-to-end encrypted and signed by the sender's private key, thus removing the need for
PGP
PGP or Pgp may refer to:
Science and technology
* P-glycoprotein, a type of protein
* Pelvic girdle pain, a pregnancy discomfort
* Personal Genome Project, to sequence genomes and medical records
* Pretty Good Privacy, a computer program for the ...
or other email encryption software. I2P-Bote offers additional anonymity by allowing for the use of mail relays with variable length delays. Since it is decentralized, there is no centralized email server that could correlate different email identities as communicating with each other (i.e. ''profiling''). Even the
nodes
In general, a node is a localized swelling (a "knot") or a point of intersection (a Vertex (graph theory), vertex).
Node may refer to:
In mathematics
*Vertex (graph theory), a vertex in a mathematical graph
*Vertex (geometry), a point where two ...
relaying the mails do not know the sender, and apart from sender and receiver, only the end of the high-
latency mail route and the storing nodes will know to whom (which I2P-Bote address – the user's IP address is still hidden by I2P) the mail is destined. The original sender could have gone offline long before the email becomes available to the recipient. No account registration is necessary, all you have to do in order to use it is create a new identity. I2P-Bote can be installed as an I2P plugin .
* I2P also has a free pseudonymous e-mail service run by an individual called ''Postman''. Susimail is a
web-based
A web application (or web app) is application software that is accessed using a web browser. Web applications are delivered on the World Wide Web to users with an active network connection.
History
In earlier computing models like client-serve ...
email client intended primarily for use with Postman's mail servers, and is designed with security and anonymity in mind. Susimail was created to address privacy concerns in using these servers directly using traditional email clients, such as leaking the user's hostname while communicating with the SMTP server. It is currently included in the default I2P distribution, and can be accessed through the I2P router console web interface. Mail.i2p can contact both I2P email users and public internet email users.
*
Bitmessage.ch can be used over I2p
Instant Messaging
* ''I2P-Messenger'' is a simple
Qt-based, serverless, end-to-end-encrypted
instant messenger
Instant messaging (IM) technology is a type of online chat allowing real-time text transmission over the Internet or another computer network. Messages are typically transmitted between two or more parties, when each user inputs text and tri ...
for I2P. No servers can log the user's conversations. No ISP can log with whom the user chats, when, or for how long. As it is serverless, it can make use of I2P's end-to-end encryption, preventing any node between two parties from having access to the plain text. I2P-Messenger can be used for fully anonymous instant communication with persons the user doesn't even know, or, alternatively, to communicate securely and untraceably with friends, family members, or colleagues. In addition to messaging,
file transfer File transfer is the transmission of a computer file through a communication channel from one computer system to another. Typically, file transfer is mediated by a communications protocol. In the history of computing, numerous file transfer protocol ...
is also supported.
* ''I2P-Talk'' is another simple instant messenger incompatible with I2P-Messenger, but having the same security properties
Publishing
* ''
Syndie
Syndie is an open-source cross-platform computer application to syndicate (re-publish) data (mainly forums) over a variety of anonymous and non-anonymous computer networks.
Syndie is capable of reaching archives situated in the following anony ...
'' is a content distribution application, suitable for
blogs
A blog (a truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order ...
,
newsgroups
A Usenet newsgroup is a repository usually within the Usenet system, for messages posted from users in different locations using the Internet. They are discussion groups and are not devoted to publishing news. Newsgroups are technically distinct ...
,
forums and small media attachments. Syndie is designed for
network resilience. It supports connections to I2P, the Tor network (Syndie does not support Socks proxies, workaround needed for Tor access), Freenet and the regular internet. Server connections are intermittent, and support
higher-latency communications. Connections can be made to any number of known servers. Content is spread efficiently using a
Gossip protocol
A gossip protocol or epidemic protocol is a procedure or process of computer peer-to-peer communication that is based on the way epidemics spread. Some distributed systems use peer-to-peer gossip to ensure that data is disseminated to all members o ...
.
* ''Aktie'' is an anonymous file sharing and distributed
Web of trust
In cryptography, a web of trust is a concept used in PGP, GnuPG, and other OpenPGP-compatible systems to establish the authenticity of the binding between a public key and its owner. Its decentralized trust model is an alternative to the centr ...
forums system. Aktie can connect to I2P with its internal router or use an external router. To fight spam, "hash payments" (proof of CPU work) is computed for every published item.
Routers
* I2PBerry is a Linux distribution which can be used as a router to encrypt and route network traffic through the I2P network.
*i2pd is a light-weight I2P router written in
C++
C++ (pronounced "C plus plus") is a high-level general-purpose programming language created by Danish computer scientist Bjarne Stroustrup as an extension of the C programming language, or "C with Classes". The language has expanded significan ...
, stripping the excessive applications such as e-mail, torrents, and others that can be regarded as bloat.
* Kovri is an I2P router written in C++. It was forked from i2pd following developer disagreements. Kovri's primary purpose is to integrate with the
cryptocurrency
A cryptocurrency, crypto-currency, or crypto is a digital currency designed to work as a medium of exchange through a computer network that is not reliant on any central authority, such as a government or bank, to uphold or maintain it. It i ...
Monero
Monero (; Abbreviation: XMR) is a decentralized cryptocurrency. It uses a public distributed ledger with privacy-enhancing technologies that obfuscate transactions to achieve anonymity and fungibility. Observers cannot decipher addresses t ...
to send new transaction information over I2P, making it much more difficult to find which node is the origin of a transaction request. Those using the Kovri router will be running full I2P routers that contribute to the I2P network the same way the current
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
router does. This project is expected to benefit both the Monero and I2P communities, since it will allow for greater privacy in Monero, and it should increase the number of nodes on the I2P network.
The Privacy Solutions project
The Privacy Solutions project, a new organization that develops and maintains I2P software, launched several new development efforts designed to enhance the privacy, security, and anonymity for users, based on I2P protocols and technology.
These efforts include:
* The Abscond browser bundle.
* i2pd, an alternate implementation of I2P, written in C++ (rather than Java).
* The "BigBrother" I2P
network monitoring
Network monitoring is the use of a system that constantly monitors a computer network for slow or failing components and that notifies the network administrator (via email, SMS or other alarms) in case of outages or other trouble. Network monitorin ...
project.
The code repository and download sections for the i2pd and Abscond project is available for the public to review and download.
Effective January, 2015 i2pd is operating under PurpleI2P.
Android
![I2PAndroid-console-0](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/I2PAndroid-console-0.9.20.png)
* Release builds of an I2P Router application for Android can be found on the
Google Play
Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store and formerly the Android Market, is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certified devices running on the Android (operating sys ...
store under The Privacy Solutions Project's Google Play account or on an
F-Droid
F-Droid is an app store and software repository for Android, serving a similar function to the Google Play store. The main repository, hosted by the project, contains only free and open source apps. Applications can be browsed, downloaded and ...
repository hosted by the developers.
* ''Nightweb'' is an Android application that utilizes I2P and Bittorrent to share blog posts, photos, and other similar content. It can also be run as a desktop application. It is no longer in development.
Cryptocurrency
Some cryptocurrencies that support I2P are listed below.
*
Bitcoin
Bitcoin ( abbreviation: BTC; sign: ₿) is a decentralized digital currency that can be transferred on the peer-to-peer bitcoin network. Bitcoin transactions are verified by network nodes through cryptography and recorded in a public distr ...
*
Monero
Monero (; Abbreviation: XMR) is a decentralized cryptocurrency. It uses a public distributed ledger with privacy-enhancing technologies that obfuscate transactions to achieve anonymity and fungibility. Observers cannot decipher addresses t ...
*
Verge
Terminology
![Itoopie](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Itoopie.svg)
; Eepsite: Eepsites are
website
A website (also written as a web site) is a collection of web pages and related content that is identified by a common domain name and published on at least one web server. Examples of notable websites are Google Search, Google, Facebook, Amaz ...
s that are hosted anonymously within the I2P network. Eepsite names end in ''.i2p'', such as ''ugha.i2p'' or ''forum.i2p''. EepProxy can locate these sites through the
cryptographic identifier keys stored in the
hosts
A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it.
Host may also refer to:
Places
*Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County
People
*Jim Host (born 1937), American businessman
*Michel Host ( ...
.txt file found within the I2P program directory. Typically, I2P is required to access these eepsites.
; .i2p: 'I2p' is a
pseudo-top-level domain A pseudo-top-level domain is a label or name for a computer network that is not participating in the world-wide official Domain Name System and may not even participate in the Internet, but may use a similar domain name hierarchy. Historically the b ...
which is only valid within the I2P
overlay network
An overlay network is a computer network that is layered on top of another network.
Structure
Nodes in the overlay network can be thought of as being connected by virtual or logical links, each of which corresponds to a path, perhaps through m ...
scope.
.i2p
names are resolved by browsers by submitting requests to EepProxy which will resolve names to an I2P peer key and will handle data transfers over the I2P network while remaining transparent to the browser.
; EepProxy: The EepProxy program handles all communication between the browser and any eepsite. It functions as a
proxy server
In computer networking, a proxy server is a server application that acts as an intermediary between a client requesting a resource and the server providing that resource.
Instead of connecting directly to a server that can fulfill a request ...
that can be used by any
web browser
A web browser is application software for accessing websites. When a user requests a web page from a particular website, the browser retrieves its files from a web server and then displays the page on the user's screen. Browsers are used on ...
.
; Peers, I2P nodes: Other machines using I2P that are connected to user's machine within the network. Each machine within the network shares the routing and forwarding of encrypted
packets.
; Tunnels: Every ten minutes, a connection is established between the user's machine and another peer. Data to and from the user, along with the data for other peers (routed through the user's machine), pass through these tunnels and are forwarded to their final destination (may include more
jumps
Jumping or leaping is a form of locomotion or movement in which an organism or non-living (e.g., robotic) mechanical system propels itself through the air along a ballistic trajectory. Jumping can be distinguished from running, galloping and o ...
).
; netDb: The
distributed hash table
A distributed hash table (DHT) is a distributed system that provides a lookup service similar to a hash table: key–value pairs are stored in a DHT, and any participating node can efficiently retrieve the value associated with a given key. The m ...
(DHT)
database
In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases sp ...
based on the
Kademlia
Kademlia is a distributed hash table for decentralized peer-to-peer computer networks designed by Petar Maymounkov and David Mazières in 2002. It specifies the structure of the network and the exchange of information through node lookups. Kademl ...
algorithm
In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm () is a finite sequence of rigorous instructions, typically used to solve a class of specific Computational problem, problems or to perform a computation. Algorithms are used as specificat ...
that holds information on I2P nodes and I2P eepsites. This database is split up among routers known as "floodfill routers". When a user wants to know how to contact an eepsite, or where more peers are, they query the
database
In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases sp ...
.
Vulnerabilities
Denial of service attacks are possible against websites hosted on the network, though a site operator may secure their site against certain versions of this type of attack to some extent.
A
zero-day vulnerability
A zero-day (also known as a 0-day) is a computer-software vulnerability previously unknown to those who should be interested in its mitigation, like the vendor of the target software. Until the vulnerability is mitigated, hackers can exploit it t ...
was discovered for I2P in 2014, and was exploited to
de-anonymize at least 30,000 users. This included users of the operating system
Tails. This vulnerability was later patched.
A 2017 study examining how
forensic investigators
''Forensic Investigators: Australia's True Crimes'' is an Australian television show hosted by Lisa McCune which aired on the Seven Network. It aired for three seasons from 2004 to 2006.
Focusing on actual Australian crimes, each episode unf ...
might exploit vulnerabilities in I2P software to gather useful evidence indicated that a seized machine which had been running I2P router software may hold unencrypted local data that could be useful to
law enforcement
Law enforcement is the activity of some members of government who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms governing that society. The term en ...
. Records of which eepsites a user of a later-seized machine was interested in may also be inferred. The study identified a "trusted" I2P
domain registrar
A domain name registrar is a company that manages the reservation of Internet domain names. A domain name registrar must be accredited by a generic top-level domain (gTLD) registry or a country code top-level domain (ccTLD) registry. A registra ...
("NO.i2p") which appeared to have been abandoned by its administrator, and which the study identified as a potential target for law enforcement takeover. It alternatively suggested waiting for NO.i2p's server to fail, only to
social engineer the I2P community into moving to a phony replacement. Another suggestion the study proposed was to register a mirror version of a target website under an identical domain.
I2PCon
![I2PCon-2015-David-Dagon](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/I2PCon-2015-David-Dagon.jpg)
From the first I2P convention was held in
Toronto, Ontario
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
.
The conference was hosted by a local
hackerspace
A hackerspace (also referred to as a hacklab, hackspace, or makerspace) is a community-operated, often "not for profit" (501(c)(3) in the United States), workspace where people with common interests, such as computers, machining, technology, sc ...
, Hacklab. The conference featured presentations from I2P developers and security researchers.
mainly had presentations on the past growth of the I2P network, a talk on what happens when companies sell people's personal information, and a round-table discussion on general privacy and security topics. The day ended with a
CryptoParty CryptoParty (Crypto-Party) is a grassroots global endeavour to introduce the basics of practical cryptography such as the Tor anonymity network, I2P, Freenet, key signing parties, disk encryption and virtual private networks to the general public. ...
, which helped to introduce new users to installing I2P, sending secure emails with I2P-Bote, and using I2P along with Vuze.
had more technical discussions than the previous day. The talks focused on how to dissuade bad-actors from using the network, how I2P has worked computer connection limits, how to do application development using I2P, and the development of the Android version. This day ended with a development meeting.
See also
*
Crypto-anarchism
Crypto-anarchism or cyberanarchism is a political ideology focusing on protection of privacy, political freedom, and economic freedom, the adherents of which use cryptographic software for confidentiality and security while sending and receiving ...
*
Deep web
The deep web, invisible web, or hidden web are parts of the World Wide Web whose contents are not indexed by standard web search-engine programs. This is in contrast to the "surface web", which is accessible to anyone using the Internet. Co ...
*
Darknet
A dark net or darknet is an overlay network within the Internet that can only be accessed with specific software, configurations, or authorization, and often uses a unique customized communication protocol. Two typical darknet types are social ne ...
*
Garlic routing
Garlic routing is a variant of onion routing that encrypts multiple messages together to make it more difficult for attackers to perform traffic analysis and to increase the speed of data transfer.
Michael J. Freedman defined "garlic routing" as ...
*
Key-based routing
Key-based routing (KBR) is a lookup method used in conjunction with distributed hash tables (DHTs) and certain other overlay networks. While DHTs provide a method to find a host responsible for a certain piece of data, KBR provides a method to fi ...
*
Public-key cryptography
Public-key cryptography, or asymmetric cryptography, is the field of cryptographic systems that use pairs of related keys. Each key pair consists of a public key and a corresponding private key. Key pairs are generated with cryptographic alg ...
*
Rendezvous protocol
A rendezvous protocol is a computer network protocol that enables resources or P2P network peers to find each other. A rendezvous protocol uses a handshaking model, unlike an eager protocol which directly copies the data. In a rendezvous protoc ...
*
Secure communication
Secure communication is when two entities are communicating and do not want a third party to listen in. For this to be the case, the entities need to communicate in a way that is unsusceptible to eavesdropping or interception. Secure communication ...
*
Threat model Threat modeling is a process by which potential threats, such as structural vulnerabilities or the absence of appropriate safeguards, can be identified and enumerated, and countermeasures prioritized. The purpose of threat modeling is to provide de ...
Software
*
Freenet
Freenet is a peer-to-peer platform for censorship-resistant, anonymous communication. It uses a decentralized distributed data store to keep and deliver information, and has a suite of free software for publishing and communicating on the Web ...
*
Mixnet
*
Retroshare
Retroshare is a free and open-source peer-to-peer communication and file sharing app based on a friend-to-friend network built by GNU Privacy Guard (GPG). Optionally, peers may exchange certificates and IP addresses to their friends and vice ...
*
Tor
Tor, TOR or ToR may refer to:
Places
* Tor, Pallars, a village in Spain
* Tor, former name of Sloviansk, Ukraine, a city
* Mount Tor, Tasmania, Australia, an extinct volcano
* Tor Bay, Devon, England
* Tor River, Western New Guinea, Indonesia
Sc ...
*
Tribler
Tribler is an open source decentralized BitTorrent client which allows anonymous peer-to-peer by default. Tribler is based on the BitTorrent protocol and uses an overlay network for content searching.
Due to this overlay network, Tribler doe ...
*
ZeroNet
ZeroNet is a decentralized web-like network of peer-to-peer users, created by Tamas Kocsis in 2015, programming for the network was based in Budapest, Hungary; is built in Python; and is fully open source. Instead of having an IP address, site ...
References
External links
*
{{authority control
Anonymity networks
Anonymous file sharing networks
Application layer protocols
Computer networking
Cross-platform free software
Cross-platform software
Cryptographic software
Cryptographic protocols
Dark web
Distributed data storage
Distributed data structures
Distributed data storage systems
Distributed file systems
File sharing
Free and open-source Android software
Free communication software
Free file transfer software
Free file sharing software
Free multilingual software
Free network-related software
Free routing software
Free software programmed in Java (programming language)
Garlic routing
Hash based data structures
Internet privacy software
Key-based routing
Mix networks
Onion routing
Overlay networks
Peer-to-peer computing
Privacy software
Software using the MIT license
2003 software