[TOR] Asus website bricked?

[Fitz Mutch]

When I visit www.asus.com, I see this:

Access Denied
You don't have permission to access "http://www.asus.com/" on this server. Reference #18.a5cb72b4.24230924b7.f385a9


However, I'm still able to browse the Netgear website without any issues, right here:
http://www.netgear.com/home/products/networking/wifi-routers/

Oh yeah... if it matters, I'm using the Tor network. Does anyone else having this problem when using Tor browsing certain websites, and why?

 

[Fitz Mutch]

In blocking Tor, they force prospective customers out into the clear. Could be a scheme to collect your location data for marketing and all lawful purposes.

I have this bad experience with these sites too, when using Tor:
http://www.walmart.com/
http://www.bestbuy.com/
http://www.costco.com/
http://www.lowes.com/
http://www.homedepot.com/
http://www.usps.com/

 

[RMerlin]

A lot of sites will block Tor exit points, as a lot of nefarious users (read: hackers) will use Tor to hide themselves. So Tor's IPs are often included in security blacklists. CDN providers like Cloudflare will also be more suspicious of activity coming from Tor nodes.

 

[Fitz Mutch]

The FBI. reported that ISIS members and other professionals are now using Asus routers w/ GPS receivers as remote detonators to set off bombs, in multiple coordinated simultaneous attacks. So they make a list of people who download the AsusWrt source code, as possible suspects... for when things start blowing up. They record everything 24x7, so when they're late to the game, as always, there's a complete recording of an entire event. Unfortunately, the law abiding Tor user must tolerate a bad experience.

 

[Almighty1]

Depends which Access ASUS server you are specifically trying to reach as asus.com can be servers around the world.

 

[Fitz Mutch]

AFAIK, the website www.asus.com is in Taiwan. Still cannot access it through Tor. I am unable to do surveillance of their boardroom.

Another ASUSTeK website www.asustor.com, is hosted by Amazon Technologies. It is accessible through Tor.
https://www.asustor.com/en/about/about_asustor

 

[System Error Message]

Tor is a vulnerable network to use. Im not sure why people still use it, its a poor choice as its full of feds monitoring and setting up their own nodes too to catch you. You're better off with a regular VPN.

 

[Fitz Mutch]

Tor is a vulnerable network to use...

When I use a free VPN + Tor, it works - I'm able to see www.asus.com. Apparently, Asus does not block the free VPN services. So, Asus is completely unaware that my VPN connection is being routed through the Tor network.

I'm sure the gov't knows it's me, but proving it is another story. For example, only 32% certainty without any corroborating evidence isn't good enough. They would need to be doing some additional investigation besides illegal monitoring of the Tor network, consuming valuable time and resources.

 

[System Error Message]

Thing is with TOR most of the nodes are owned by feds, the in and outs are monitored and the feds regularly inject code into tor sites to identify users.
So using TOR + VPN is no difference but slower than using VPN on its own.

 

[Almighty1]

AFAIK, the website www.asus.com is in Taiwan. Still cannot access it through Tor. I am unable to do surveillance of their boardroom.

Another ASUSTeK website www.asustor.com, is hosted by Amazon Technologies. It is accessible through Tor.
https://www.asustor.com/en/about/about_asustor

www.asus.com is at your nearest Akamai server as it's all handled by Akamai's Content Delivery Network which depends on the DNS you use as it is the Akamai server closest to the DNS you use. All you have to do is post your traceroute to www.asus.com which will show where it goes.

For me:
C:\WINDOWS\system32>tracert www.asus.com

Tracing route to e11960.e15.akamaiedge.net [104.96.96.55]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 1 ms 1 ms <1 ms GTAC5300.WARP.NET [192.168.2.1]
2 20 ms 21 ms 27 ms 96.120.88.205
3 22 ms 23 ms 32 ms te-0-7-0-5-sur03.sfmission.ca.sfba.comcast.net [68.85.190.165]
4 22 ms 22 ms 22 ms be-210-ar01.santaclara.ca.sfba.comcast.net [68.85.57.245]
5 45 ms 10 ms 9 ms a104-96-96-55.deploy.static.akamaitechnologies.com [104.96.96.55]

Trace complete.

 

[Fitz Mutch]

Thing is with TOR most of the nodes are owned by feds ...

That's how they know it's me because they're watching all nodes in my circuit.

the feds regularly inject code into tor sites to identify users.

Turn off JavaScript in the browser. AND, a properly configured Tor firewall should route all TCP traffic through the Tor network while blocking all UDP traffic at the router.

 

[Fitz Mutch]

www.asus.com is at your nearest Akamai server

Here's me...

traceroute to 2.22.153.228 (2.22.153.228), 30 hops max, 60 byte packets
1 gw.for.51.vlan.via.ncc-8.macomnet.net (195.128.76.225) 0.297 ms 0.249 ms 0.232 ms
2 msk05.transtelecom.net (217.150.43.70) 3.083 ms 3.085 ms 3.113 ms
3 core-backbone.ttk.ru (5.56.17.58) 53.687 ms 53.004 ms 52.883 ms
4 ae8-0.lon10.core-backbone.com (5.56.17.57) 58.265 ms 58.222 ms 58.188 ms
5 ae1-2022.zur10.core-backbone.com (81.95.15.214) 55.908 ms 55.927 ms 55.999 ms
6 core-backbone.akamai.com (5.56.18.30) 56.470 ms 56.090 ms 56.064 ms
7 2.22.153.228 (2.22.153.228) 55.977 ms 56.096 ms 56.396 ms

 

[Almighty1]

www.asus.com and other Akamai hosted content sites such as www.apple.com and www.microsoft.com actually should use the same Akamai server which is always hosted geographically network-wise to the server closest to the DNS you are using.

 

[Fitz Mutch]

So, Akamai is blocking the Tor exit nodes. Maybe there's a net neutrality law that makes this illegal?

 

[MichaelCG]

Akamai itself is not an ISP....they are a content provider/service. The "intent" of net neutrality was regarding the the ISP providing the path, not the service provider who you are attempting to consume.

A lot of companies will subscribe to various black lists to knock down the random attackers hitting their services. Some of these blacklists will include anonymizers, known Tor exit nodes, as well as some VPN services. All depends on what the customer has asked for. I know my company tends to frown upon Tor exit nodes being able to hit our public sites as well and we block them....when we happen to know about them. It is mostly pointless since nodes can change at any point in time, but it is a feel good measure to report to leaders that we are actually doing something. It also does tend to lower the noise floor in our logs...at least for a short while.

 

[System Error Message]

So, Akamai is blocking the Tor exit nodes. Maybe there's a net neutrality law that makes this illegal?

A lot of Tor traffic is suspicious, not only is it blocked to avoid suspicious individuals but no one would want a DDOS or hacker that uses a TOR network.

You can disable javascript but that doesnt stop links from coming. For example, flash content.

 

[Almighty1]

Akamai might not be blocking tor but rather, it might be blocking the DNS Servers that you are using while using tor so if you can change the DNS servers, it might actually work. Akamai itself is a Content Delivery Network that is hosted at different networks for free as basically, it's like a content caching server to save bandwidth of whoevers network it is on so basically, all they do is put a physical machine on someone else's network to benefit everyone near that network on the inside and outside. So basically, all Akamai servers globally will have a copy of the same content and configuration of what things they allow and what they block. They even specifically said here they blocked Tor users:
https://community.akamai.com/thread/4540-serve-custom-page-when-blocking-tor-users

 

[Fitz Mutch]

... all Akamai servers globally will have a copy of the same content and configuration of what things they allow and what they block. They even specifically said here they blocked Tor users

The FCC could recognize Tor users as a minority class who is being discriminated against by Akamai. I invest both time and money to maintain my anonymity. Without it my life would be very painful.

Akamai controls 15-30% of all web traffic on the Internet. Not a monopoly yet, however I think this puts them at the level of a major ISP and that the net neutrality laws could be applied, in the public interest, even though they're not really an ISP.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akamai_Technologies
The company was founded in 1998 by Daniel M. Lewin (then a graduate student at MIT) and MIT applied mathematics professor Tom Leighton. Lewin was killed aboard American Airlines Flight 11, which crashed in the September 11 attacks of 2001. Leighton currently serves as Akamai's CEO.

Akamai is a Hawaiian word meaning "intelligent" or "clever".

 

[RMerlin]

I invest both time and money to maintain my anonymity.

And Akamai invests money in protecting their customers.

Your argument would be like trying to say that RBL services like Spamhaus are discriminatory and illegal - they're not.

You chose to use Tor. No one is forcing you to, and there are no critical reason for one to feel forced to use it to visit public sites like Asus' either. Akamai has a perfect right to handle it as it wishes so. In fact, many other sites will handle Tor visitors with limited access, without the use of Akamai's services. Google will often give you a Captcha if visiting their site through Tor. Cloudflare is also more likely to do the same.

I think this puts them at the level of a major ISP and that the net neutrality laws could be applied, in the public interest

That is not what net neutrality is about. Net neutrality is about companies that provide bandwidth to customers, stating that they shouldn't give preferential treatment to some customers versus others, since their role is to provide bandwidth. Akamai is more like a security company hired by a final destination that decides who can get in and who can't, just like a security guard at a bank might be entitled to refuse access to a customer who looks potentially threatening and/or dangerous to the people working inside the bank. Or like a firewall that decides who can get in and who cannot. Unless you're going to tell us that the firewall running on your router is also infringing on Net Neutrality, since it won't allow anyone to get through your firewall and into your computers...

 

[Fitz Mutch]

You chose to use Tor. No one is forcing you to, and there are no critical reason for one to feel forced to use it to visit public sites like Asus' either.

I just want to anonymously browse the products and services at these websites, without making a purchase. So I'm going to keep it about the websites that I use.
http://www.asus.com/
http://www.walmart.com/
http://www.bestbuy.com/
http://www.costco.com/
http://www.lowes.com/
http://www.homedepot.com/
http://www.usps.com/

Tor is a bandwidth limiter and it is restricted to TCP only. Therefore, a hacker is limited to doing a very slow TCP-only port scan of a target. Is this activity a threat to the above websites? Probably not. Is it a threat to only Akamai? Maybe, because they want to be the fastest content provider in the world. So, does Akamai really protect customers by blocking Tor? Probably not.

I'm able to browse both Ebay and Amazon websites without issue via Tor. Are these companies making a mistake by allowing Tor users to anonymously browse the seller listings? No, in my opinion. It's a good thing when more people can see what you're selling.

Akamai has become a giant machine who controls 15-30% of the global website traffic. Maybe I was wrong; Akamai could be a monopoly. We just don't know for sure because it's an obscure thing, the way this Internet works. When my request to www.asus.com was blocked by the "Access Denied" page, it did not say Akamai anywhere. Someone had to show me a traceroute, proving that Akamai delivers content for www.asus.com. Is Akamai hiding something? Just make the blocked webpage read, "Access Denied by Akamai Technologies". Now that would be transparency.