[tor-talk] Harvard student used Tor to send bomb threats, gets caught by old-fashioned policework

[tor at bitmessage.ch]

I appreciate your perspective but still think the community may still be
better off--including those who take the time to RTFM--by taking a harm
reduction approach to the RTFM-related problems you've mentioned.

The incident seems to suggest that at least some people who we could
assume are capable of RTFM--and I heartily agree that this person is not a
good example of tor usage for a variety of reasons--appear not to be RTFM
for whatever reason. While I don't condone this user's choices, I hope
it's not controversial to suggest that this person probably now wishes he
had RTFM, or alternatively that the TBB's design had presented him with
more timely, relevant information as he was actually using Tor.

We may not feel sympathetic to this user's situation because of the
circumstances, but I hoped to point out that something similar could
plausibly happen to some *other* person using Tor for good that we
probably wouldn't want to experience the Syrian equivalent or the Chinese
equivalent of the consequences this person now faces.

We're all free to reiterate RTFM from our positions of relative privilege,
but I also think we should acknowledge that some users we should care
about don't or won't or can't always RTFM. Framing user education as an
important problem to solve or mitigate where possible seems like a more
constructive approach to me. Maybe we can't prevent all users from making
unwise choices, but to the extent we can help more of them, I still think
we should try.

So for the honest users out there who don't do reprehensible things but
may also sometimes not RTFM (e.g. because their internet access is
limited, or who live in constant fear of an oppressive regime, or who
can't afford time in the internet cafe to read all of the documentation),
I still hope this community will keep at it and continue to make it harder
for users to make mistakes without impinging on others' autonomy/freedom.

> Probably not. Most people do not follow instructions or do something
> stupid. In this case he apparently immediately admitted that he had sent
> the email. At least he is honest.
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