How to open onion sites and understand dark web access

One newspaper, two entrances

Imagine a newspaper that also offers its articles at an address ending in .onion. This is an onion website: a website reached through the Tor network. The devices and cables still use the Internet.

For an ordinary website, the Tor path goes through an exit relay to the wider Internet. For the onion website, the two paths meet inside Tor. The illustration simplifies the established connection; it leaves out the earlier introduction process.

What does the long address mean?

Current onion addresses have 56 letters and digits before .onion. The address is tied to a cryptographic key. This lets Tor check that it has reached the service belonging to that address.

It does not verify a newsroom or promise quality. Someone publishing a different, similar-looking address can run a different website. Compare the entire address with a trusted publication from the provider.

Protected path, visible information

The connection is encrypted from Tor Browser to the onion service, even if the actual .onion address starts with http://. The onion protocol already provides this protection. On ordinary websites, HTTP without HTTPS is not protected in this way.

An IP address is an address used to transfer data over the Internet. The onion service does not learn your connection IP from the connection path. The website still receives what you send it, such as a search query or a comment.

If you sign in, it can link the visit to your account. Operators can also reveal their identity through information they provide. A protected connection does not promise complete anonymity.

Pause for a moment: What do you know?

The imaginary newspaper displays a familiar logo at an unfamiliar .onion address. Does that prove it is genuine? No. The logo alone does not establish who controls the address.

You sign in with your newspaper account. Are you still unknown to the newspaper? No. The connection hides your connection IP, but not the account you choose to use.

How do I open an onion site?

1. Open Tor Browser and wait until it connects to Tor. An ordinary browser window is not automatically connected to Tor.

2. Obtain the complete onion address from a trusted publication by the provider. Paste it into the address bar and check the .onion ending. A logo or a similar-looking name is not sufficient verification.

3. Tor Browser shows an onion icon during the visit. It describes the connection, not the reliability of news, offers or downloads. Reading a public text is enough for a first experiment.

Why is an onion site unavailable?

If the address is invalid, first check the copied characters. Old addresses with only 16 characters before .onion are no longer supported. Current service names have 56 characters; additional subdomains may appear before them.

If Tor connects but a particular service does not load, that service may be offline or overloaded. Trying later is more useful than immediately changing your protections. A service requiring an access key also needs permission from its operator.

What protects visitors, and what protects operators?

For visitors, the connection path hides the connection IP from the onion service. For operators, it hides the server address from visitors. A named comment, a linked account or published contact information can still disclose an identity.

An onion service does not replace a web server. Behind the access point can be a normal website with HTML, server-side programs and a database. Tor carries the connection; the application decides content, login and data processing. Running Tor Browser does not publish a website.

Think it through: a newsroom publicly lists its onion address on its ordinary website. Is the newsroom’s identity secret? No, and it need not be. It can offer Tor to give readers an additional protected way to access its work.