Tor browser now has a mobile version for Android devices

After months of testing, finally Tor Project announced the launch of the Tor Android browser, which will be available for download via the official Google Play Store platform, reported web application security services experts.

Thanks to this, users of Android devices will no longer have to resort to alternatives like Orfox to browse privately; this browser integrates the Tor protocol stack into a completely different browser.

The developers of Tor Project announced this project last September 2018; since then the public tests with alpha versions began and, after eight months, the mobile browser version is now available, the web application security service specialists mentioned.

During the announcement, Isabella Bagueros, director of Tor Project, said: “For us, to live up to the demand of users who only browse Internet through a mobile device was a priority”. The developers of Tor for Android ensure that the users of mobile devices are subjected to a constant activity of surveillance, censorship and information gathering, so offering alternatives to conventional browsers was fundamental.

“Although there are still notable differences between the version of Tor for desktops and the new version for mobile devices, Tor’s essential function, which is the protection of the user’s privacy, is equally functional in both versions of the Browser”, the developers added.

The mobile Tor Browser was launched with version number 8.5 and is synchronized with all previous versions of the browser for Linux, Windows and Mac; these systems will also update to V 8.5 shortly, reported web application security service experts.  

Although there is no official version of the Tor browser for computers with iOS, specialists from the International Institute of Cyber Security (IICS) recommend users of Apple devices to install the Onion Browser app to use the Tor browser in system Operative iOS.

Other companies have undertaken similar projects, such as Mozilla, which is currently working to find a method of integrating Tor protocol in the Firefox browser, it should be noted that Tor was written from the Mozilla code, so there are those who consider that the development of this project would bring the ultimate private navigation tool.