There are many reasons why Internet user might prefer to surf the Web anonymously. It might be related to the “privacy paranoia” that can be developed following multiple frightening posts on the government monitoring and controlling all Internet communications, or, possibly, somehow justified fear on being tracked by the governmental organizations in the countries, where the meaning of freedom is not properly developed yet. JAP (JonDo) anonymous browser gives a user such possibilities. The degree of the featured software anonymization abilities is so good, that the German Police insisted in 2004 on opening a backdoor to the product allowing proper authorities interception, while investigating cases related to child pornography. The required modification was performed, but later was subsequently removed as a result of court action by JAP.

While you use a regular browser for Web searches, your computer in communicates with Internet using a traceable address that can track, which site you were visiting, and who is your internet service provider (ISP). JAP uses a single static address which is shared by many JAP users. That way neither the visited website, nor an eavesdropper can determine which user visited which website.

So, instead of connecting directly to a Web Server, JAP uses integrated proxy services that hide the real IP address through a proxy mix cascade that effectively hides the identity of any one single user among the connections of all the other users - making it impossible, even for the proxy provider, to determine which IP belongs to which user. After installing JAP, you need to configure your browser to use the local proxy server for web browsing. The provided control panel allows you to turn anonymity on or off, and also displays the current level of security. JAP comes pre-configured with several free service providers and also supports pay services. The free services are run by universities and other public infrastructures and are free of charge for the user. The mix providers officially declare that they do not keep connection log files or exchange such data with other mix providers.

Note, that the project supports the following Internet protocols: HTTP, HTTPS, FTP (download only), and Gopher. Other applications, like file sharing, P2P, chat, IM, email, and Internet telephony, are not supported.

Software can be downloaded from the authors’s Web site:

http://anon.inf.tu-dresden.de/index_en.html