I’m trying to use YouTube on the Tor, but I can’t register a Google account there asking me for a phone number
I just want to use YouTube
Why? The moment you create an account, you’ve given enough information to Google, to identify you over Tor. Tor is meant to be used without an account, for anything. It’s an anonymity tool, not a privacy tool. The moment you sign in to an account, you’re immediately throwing the anonymity aspect out of the window.
Now as for your issue. You can find sites to find temporary numbers, for basic SMS. Depending on the exit node of Tor, you’d need a different regional phone number. Hence why I cannot give you a link. Do note, the supplier of this temp number will be able to see every message. The number will also be given to another future user of that service, who essentially could get control of your Google account (SMS recovery). It’s a solution, but not a good one. Not something I can honestly recommend doing, but I know some folks that do this.
If you want to use YouTube, the way I see it, you have four options:
- Use Invidious, or Piped. Personally, I prefer Piped. I find it to be a little more stable, and an overall smoother experience. They both still have some issues, though.
- Use a YouTube alternative, like Odyssee. If anyone is interested, here is Techlore’s channel. Do note, their account deletion is a nightmare to go through.
- Use normal YouTube, and bookmark or create RSS feeds of peoples channels.
- Use normal YouTube, with a Google account, and just accept that as a weak point in your privacy journey. Just make sure your YouTube experience is isolated within it’s own browser/container.
I’m sorry, I didn’t explain exactly what I wanted to do
I live in a country that does not recognize freedom of opinion
I don’t care if Google knows that I like apples more than bananas
I just want to write an opinion without getting hurt
Alright, that’s fair. If a VPN (Proton, Mullvad, IVPN) is not an option for you, then Tor is naturally your best option. I’d encourage you to use a search provider like duckduckgo, or Brave Search. Look up a temp phone provider, within Tor/VPN, for obvious reasons.
For example, one of the first sites that came up for me was MyTempSMS. I think I used them when I needed an Argentina number, awhile back. According to the Who.is record the site run by an American person/group, in Phoenix… Though, that could be fake info… it’s not like there’s super-strict checking done.
Do you know how to find your exit node? If not, here’s how:
In this case, the exit node is Germany.
2 Likes
Well thank you I appreciate your help for me
I discourage the usage of temp number services, I heard from Michael Bazzel on his podcast that your accounts could be compromised. The number is used for 2FA and the numbers are public… meaning anyone could receive your 2FA codes it’s important to keep in mind the potential security risk. If you have no money to buy a burner phone/sim and don’t mind potentially losing the account then this risk may be okay for you.
Most services will only use the number to verify your identity. They will store the number to prevent it from being used again but, they won’t use it for 2FA unless you turn it on.
@Blurb5778 is suggesting using the number to verify the account, not set-up 2FA.
Adding on to this, a random person with your TOTP code still can’t access your account without your username and password, which aren’t sent via SMS. Unless I’m missing something, a compromised account is only likely via a targeted attack, especially since most services don’t list the registered number when requesting a TOTP code anyway.
The “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Online Anonymity” has a section on online phone numbers. I have personally used virtualsim.net for phone number verifications in the past and I had zero issues with it. I highly recommend paying with Monero so you can preserve your anonymity.
That, or you can waste your time trying to find a free SMS receiving service. You might get lucky in the end, but it’s all about how much you value your time. For me I’d much rather pay the $2 and get on with my day.
Yeah I was referring to a targeted attack. Maybe a better example would be creating an account with bob@gmail.com the person who owns that email could password reset your account. It might be possible to reset your account via a phone number too. Asking for verification would involve typing a code I’d call that 2FA. Maybe I’m still missing something but it’s something to think about. @reformed_sandpaper might have a better solution where you buy the number for 2 minutes every time you need the code. But I think people could just buy the number you’re using and get codes that way.
Google doesn’t use the number you verify your account with as 2FA for logging in. Although, they may encourage you to enable SMS 2FA, it is opt-in.
In the case that someone manages to access the number you used to verify, as long as you didn’t enable SMS 2FA, they can’t recover your account.
1 Like
That makes sense that lines up with my previous experiences. Enable TOTP everyone.