Anonymous Network Workshop 2025/08, preparation and staff recruitment

Early in the preparation we applied for a one-day track, before COSCUP had announced which day each track would get, so the groundwork went ahead without a date. The workshop followed the format of the February 2025 event run by the Tor and OONI teams, Internet Freedom Workshop: Tor、Tails、OONI, with the material adapted to local conditions and taught in Chinese.

Staff were recruited for two roles. One person could take both, basic skills were enough to apply, and we ran training sessions afterwards.

Staff applications

Applicants wrote to Anonymity Networks Community anoni.net <[email protected]>, answering the questions below and adding anything else they wanted. People who heard about the call through the newsletter could reply to the newsletter directly.

- Nickname: (what you would like us to call you)
- Self-introduction: (a short introduction; mention any earlier community events you joined)
- Role you want to apply for: [ ] Event organizer, [ ] Workshop helper.
- What you could contribute to and gain from the workshop: (so we can give you work you enjoy)

Event organizers

Preparation ran from May to early August 2025, about three months. Organizers handled promotion, registration, notifications, and venue coordination. The venue was the Yan-Yang Teaching Building at National Taiwan University of Science and Technology（國立臺灣科技大學 研揚教學大樓）. At the time of recruitment the exact day and room had not been announced, and were expected with the conference schedule on 9 July 2025.

Schedule

Month	Goal
2025/05	Build the preparation team, recruit helpers and staff.
2025/06	Complete the translation of materials and the localized course design.
2025/07	Event promotion and registration.
2025/08	The event, post-event records, and notifications.

Monthly tasks

Staff applications

Workshop helpers

The workshop offered two courses:

Tor and Tails

The course covers how the Tor anonymity network and onion services work, how to use the Tails USB operating system, and the situations each one suits. Helper skills are graded in the levels below. Applicants could place themselves first, and the training aimed to bring everyone to Basic L3.

Tor skill levels

Tor: Basic L1 Tor: Basic L2 Tor: Basic L3 Tor: Advanced L1 Tor: Advanced L2

• Understand what Tor is.
• Understand why internet freedom matters and what anonymity networks are.
• The state of internet freedom in Taiwan.
• Internet conditions in neighbouring countries.

• Understand how Tor Browser connects.
• Types of Tor bridges: Bridge, Snowflake, WebTunnel.
• When and where to use each connection method.
• Whether Tor can be used over a VPN.

• Install Tor Browser and use it for at least one week.
• Connect to the Tor network with a direct connection and through a bridge.
• Switch the current circuit.
• Visit a .onion address.

• Tell apart the technologies that Tor, Onion, and Tor Browser each refer to.
• Use the Snowflake browser extension to run a Tor bridge.
• Start Tor and connect through SOCKS v5.
• Use metrics.torproject.org to look up relays in Taiwan.

• Set up a Tor relay.
• Set up a Tor bridge.
• Set up a WebTunnel bridge.
• Set up a .onion website.

Tails skill levels

Tails: Basic L1 Tails: Basic L2 Tails: Basic L3 Tails: Advanced L1 Tails: Advanced L2

• Understand what Tails is and how it works.
• Understand why internet freedom matters and what anonymity networks are.
• The state of internet freedom in Taiwan.
• Internet conditions in neighbouring countries.

• Know how to make a Tails USB stick.
• Know how to set a computer to boot from USB.
• Know which Mac models cannot run Tails.
• Know the use cases and limitations of Tails.

• Install Tails and use it for at least one week.
• Create a Persistent Storage.
• Configure Tails to connect through a bridge.
• Share files with OnionShare.

• Set up sending and receiving for a Gmail account in Thunderbird (IMAP).
• Update Tails to the latest version.
• Understand MAC address anonymization.
• Back up the Persistent Storage.

• Use the KeePassXC password manager.
• Create encryption keys and encrypt files with GnuPG and Kleopatra.
• Send encrypted mail to [email protected] with Thunderbird (the public key is on Stay informed).
• Delete files securely.

OONI network interference measurement

The course covers what OONI measurements contain, how to run tests and submit results with OONI Probe, and how to read the measurement data published online. Helper skills follow the same levels, with Basic L3 as the training goal.

OONI skill levels

OONI: Basic L1 OONI: Basic L2 OONI: Basic L3 OONI: Advanced L1 OONI: Advanced L2

• Understand what OONI is.
• Understand what network surveillance and censorship are.
• How OONI tests work.
• Differences in network surveillance and censorship between Taiwan and other countries.

• Install OONI Probe and use it to produce test reports.
• Whether OONI Probe can be run over a VPN.
• The risks of running OONI Probe.
• How autonomous systems and ASNs (autonomous system numbers) work.

• Use OONI Explorer to compile Taiwan's measurements from the past six months.
• Use OONI Explorer to compare measurements from three countries.
• Review current internet blocking reports.
• Create an OONI Run link and find the online report for it.

• Run OONI Probe from the command line.
• Understand how websites are added to the test lists.

• Organize and analyze raw measurement data.
• Help compile and correct the test lists.

Staff applications

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Round-Table

The event was eventually given two days. The workshop was scheduled for the first day (9 August) from 12:30 to 15:30, and the rest of the first day and all of the second were planned as round-table sessions on anonymity networks, internet censorship, and open source tools. The topics were first drafted as six, in three groups covering the current situation, technology, and community collaboration. We invited people from the news media, independent journalists, civil society groups, and the open source technology community to identify problems together and work towards agreed solutions.

Each round-table was planned for no more than 25 people, with 1 to 2 facilitators and 1 note-taker. Before the event we invited people interested in the topics below to act as facilitators, and welcomed recommendations (contact details on Stay informed).

Round-table roles

• Facilitator: Chairs the session, keeps the pace and the time, makes sure the agenda runs as planned and that every participant has a chance to speak.
• Participants: Take part in the discussion, share their views, and work together towards solutions or resolutions.
• Note-taker: Records the key points, decisions, and action items, then organizes the notes after the session and sends them to the people concerned for follow-up.
• Observers (optional): Sit in on the session and assess the topics and process without taking part in the discussion or decisions, offering an outside view for reflection and improvement afterwards.
• Experts or Consultants (optional): Give specialist opinions and actionable advice on specific issues, supporting decisions in technical or specialized areas.

Proposed discussion topics

The six topics in three groups were a first draft, open to change when facilitators joined, or to be replaced by topics the facilitators set. Before the event, a two-minute anonymous survey (in Chinese) asked people which topics interested them.

Topic survey

Topic group 1: open source technology and anonymity tools

"The open source foundations of Tor/Tails/OONI and room for local participation"

• How do these tools work? Which free software and open source licences do they use?
• Which parts can developers and security researchers in Taiwan contribute to? (e.g., translation, bug reports, tutorials)
• How can we reduce the sense of "technical distance" so more people want to contribute?

"From user to contributor: how Taiwan can build community nodes and feedback channels for Tor/OONI"

• Does Taiwan have foundational nodes such as Tor relays or OONI Probe? How are they doing?
• What are the practical technical, administrative, and legal challenges? (e.g., hosting costs, blocking, legal concerns)
• Can a community approach help run them and mentor newcomers?

Topic group 2: open source values and internet freedom

"Free software and digital rights: why is open source key to anonymity tools?"

• Why does open source matter to journalists and civil society groups? How is trust in a tool established?
• Core values such as "verifiability", "censorship resistance", and "community governance".
• Open source or closed commercial security tools: how should we choose?

"How to localize an open source anonymity toolkit?"

• From everyday browsing (Tor) to operating systems (Tails) and network measurement (OONI), which other open source tools could be included?
• What should the toolkit contain? (e.g., a Live USB image, local language packs, manuals)
• A simplified "Taiwan edition" of the kit (for NGOs, journalists, and beginners).

Topic group 3: local community and collaboration in practice

"A decentralized, open source collaborative initiative to promote anonymity networks"

• If we work in the way civic tech and open source communities collaborate, how should the work be divided?
• Could an "open source operations team" (a working group) maintain Tor/OONI servers and regularly test ISP blocking?
• Which non-technical roles (design, translation, teaching, writing) can take part?

"Potential for regional open source collaboration: connecting with anonymity network communities elsewhere in Asia"

• Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, China, Japan, South Korea, and other places have similar open source anonymity projects or outreach teams.
• Can cross-border collaboration be built? For example, translating OONI test results together or co-writing teaching materials.
• Can Taiwan act as a connecting point? (Given its security, freedom of speech, and technical community)