Onion Explained
The technology behind a Torzon URL in plain language, grouped into four short series. Read the address anatomy series first if you are new to onion addresses.
Address anatomy
3 articlesAnatomy of a Torzon onion address, character by character
A version 3 Torzon onion address is 56 characters plus .onion. What those characters encode and why none of them are random decoration.
Why the Torzon URL only uses letters and the digits 2 to 7
Onion addresses use base32, which skips 0, 1, 8 and 9. Knowing the alphabet helps you catch a fake Torzon URL at a glance.
The built-in checksum in every Torzon link
Part of each v3 onion address is a checksum. Why that stops random typos from working but does not protect you from deliberate lookalikes.
How onion services work
4 articlesHow Tor Browser reaches a Torzon onion service
Introduction points, a rendezvous relay and six hops: a plain-language walk through what happens when you open a Torzon onion.
Why a new Torzon mirror needs time to become reachable
A new Torzon mirror is only reachable once its descriptor has been published. Why fresh addresses sometimes fail for the first minutes.
How one service can sit behind several Torzon market mirrors
Large onion services spread load across several back-end servers and several addresses. How that relates to the Torzon market mirror list.
Proof of work and slow starts on the Torzon market link
Recent Tor versions let onion services ask browsers to solve a small puzzle during floods. What that means when a Torzon market link is slow to start.
Lookalike attacks
3 articlesVanity prefixes: how fake Torzon URLs copy the first characters
Attackers can generate onion addresses that start with the same letters as a real Torzon URL. Why matching the first few characters proves nothing.
Lookalike characters in posted Torzon links
Text in posts and images can hide lookalike characters in a Torzon link. Why copying from images or styled text is risky.
Why search ads for a Torzon market URL are a red flag
Paid results and spam pages compete for searches such as torzon market url. How these pages work and why they rank for a while.
Network defences
3 articlesWhat an Onion-Location header says about a Torzon onion
Some websites announce their onion version through an Onion-Location header. What that signal means and why its absence proves little.
Does a Torzon onion need HTTPS?
Onion connections are already encrypted end to end. Why most onion services use plain http and what the address bar padlock means there.
Why an outdated Tor Browser makes Torzon links less safe
Updates patch browser flaws and add onion defences. Why opening a Torzon link in an old Tor Browser is an avoidable risk.