Privacy through anonymous communications?

Abstract

The well-known services Tor and JAP offer anonymous communication in the Internet. These systems are based on the mix network, introduced in 1981 by David Chaum, which provides strong anonymity, i.e. protection against traffic analysis. After 10 years of applied research on a running system for anonymity we will give some insights about the costs and benefits but also the bounds of providing privacy solutions in the real world.

Research in Privacy Enhancing Technology has meanwhile a tradition of at least 20 years. We will look back in history and see which basic concepts - beside the mix network - were proposed and look into the future to estimate how they could be used to protect our privacy in the future.