Tor Browser debuts on Android

Moneycontrol News

Tor Browser has been launched for Android and is available in an alpha channel directly through Google Play and later through Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. The Tor Browser for Android is based on Firefox version 60. Also, it comes with NoScript 10.1.9.1 and HTTPS Everywhere extensions.

Alternatively, one can download its APK file from APK Mirror. The app is 32MB in size, as reported by Gadgets360.

Tor Browser by default blocks user identity while browsing the web. It also helps the user to block access to the user’s current location and passes the traffic over the Tor network.

Initially, one needs to install the Orbot app on an Android device to connect the browser with the Tor network. The community is, aiming to abandon the requirement of the Orbot app in the stable release of Tor Browser for Android.

One can browse the web on the Tor Browser in multiple tabs, and for enhanced privacy, there is an option to open new private tabs. The browser also enables a guest session that hides all the browsing history and bookmarks. One can add new add-ons to the browser by visiting the Mozilla site.

The interface of the Tor Browser for Android is similar to any Firefox browser. There is a Homepage that by default includes Facebook and Wikipedia and comes with a Highlights section to show articles, videos, and web pages visited received or bookmarked on the browser. There is a dedicated Bookmarks tab and a History tab to provide the Web browsing history.

Similar to Linux, Mac, and Windows, Tor Browser of Android delivers a private Web browsing experience. Further, the browser automatically clears stored cookies while browsing.

The user’s traffic through the Tor Browser "is encrypted three times" as it passes over the Tor network. But one needs to separately install the Orbot app on the device to leverage the Tor network.

The initiative comes long after The Tor Project brought its proxy app Orbot and the standalone Orbot-powered web browser Orfox.

The Tor Browser for Android presently has some bugs which could be fixed in the next release, most probably after one year.