Emerald OnionEmerald Onion

Legal FAQ

What is Emerald Onion?

Emerald Onion is a U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and Tor exit relay operator based in Seattle, WA. Emerald Onion's mission is to protect privacy, anonymity, access to information, and free speech online. We envision a world where access and privacy are the defaults; if we do not have human rights online, we will not have them offline, either.

What is Tor and Why Does Emerald Onion Run Tor Exit Routers?

Tor is free and open-source software maintained by The Tor Project, Inc. and the Tor network is a decentralized, volunteer-operated network including Emerald Onion. Tor protects people who face censorship and surveillance, including journalists, human rights defenders, and ordinary people in hostile environments, by giving them private and uncensored access to the internet. Running Tor exit routers is our way of supporting people that have something important to read or say.

To learn more about Tor, see:

How Can I Tell if an IP Address is Actually an Emerald Onion Tor Exit Router?

The Tor Project validates IP addresses of Tor routers at https://exonerator.torproject.org/. You can use this site to verify the status of Emerald Onion's Tor routers by entering the IP address and the date in question. Emerald Onion announces all of its relays from AS396507 within:

  • 23.129.64.0/24
  • 2620:18c::/36

What Information Does Emerald Onion Retain?

Emerald Onion does not log any network information. Because we have no subscribers or customers, we hold no records or other information described in 18 U.S.C. § 2703(c), and no basic subscriber information listed in § 2703(c)(2). A preservation request under 18 U.S.C. § 2703(f) reaches only records already in a recipient's possession; it cannot compel anyone to begin collecting, and we possess nothing to preserve.

Emerald Onion requires valid legal process issued by an authority of competent jurisdiction. Emerald Onion is a U.S. entity; requests from non-U.S. authorities must proceed through mutual legal assistance channels. Legal process may be served using the contact information at the bottom of this page.

Emerald Onion is not an electronic communication service as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 2510(15): that term reaches only services provided to "users thereof," and under § 2510(13) a user is a person or entity who uses the service and is duly authorized by the provider to do so. We authorize no one, and no one holds an account, subscription, or any other service relationship with us.

Emerald Onion is not a remote computing service as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 2711(2): we offer no computer storage or processing services to the public. Emerald Onion is not a telecommunications carrier as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 1001(8): we transmit or switch nothing as a common carrier for hire, and we are not subject to the assistance capability requirements of 47 U.S.C. § 1002.

Per Emerald Onion's policy, we publish that we have received each type of legal process during the reporting cycle in which we receive it; and, if allowed by law, we will publish the original legal documents we receive.

Pen Register and Trap and Trace (PRTT) Orders

Emerald Onion is not a proper recipient of a pen register or trap and trace order. The chapter authorizing these orders (18 U.S.C. §§ 3121-3127) takes its definition of an electronic communication service from § 2510 (§ 3127(1)); as stated above, Emerald Onion is not one. Further, by design, Tor exit traffic reaches our relays only from other Tor relays and leaves only toward the destination the sender chose. Our relays never have contact with the origin of a communication, human or automated, and receive nothing that identifies one. Independent of how our relays are classified, a pen register or trap and trace device applied to them would capture dialing, routing, addressing, or signaling information that cannot identify the origin of any communication and cannot be attributed to any person or target.

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) offers four safe harbors to protect providers from copyright liability for the acts of their users, provided that certain requirements are met (17 U.S.C. § 512). Emerald Onion is a section 512(a) "conduit" provider.

DMCA Takedown Notices and Preservation Demands

A takedown notice under 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3) identifies material residing on a service provider's system that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled. Emerald Onion's relays transmit; they do not store, host, or cache material. There is nothing to remove and no access to disable, and the notice-and-takedown provisions of § 512(c) do not apply to section 512(a) conduit transmissions. A subpoena under 17 U.S.C. § 512(h) requires a notification that satisfies § 512(c)(3)(A); no such notification can be made for conduit transmissions, and no § 512(h) subpoena can properly issue to Emerald Onion.

In Cox Communications, Inc. v. Sony Music Entertainment, 607 U.S. ___ (2026), the Supreme Court held that a company is not liable for copyright infringement merely because it provides a service to the general public knowing that some will use it to infringe. Contributory liability requires inducing infringement or offering a service tailored to it. Emerald Onion does not induce or encourage infringement, and a Tor exit relay is general-purpose infrastructure capable of substantial noninfringing uses.

Preservation requests under 18 U.S.C. § 2703(f) may be made by a governmental entity only; a private party cannot invoke that section. As stated above, Emerald Onion retains no records to preserve in any case.

Emerald Onion Repeat Infringer Termination Policy

Emerald Onion does not have subscribers or account holders and cannot identify the IP addresses of individuals who send communications over the Tor network. Nonetheless, it is our policy to terminate the use of Emerald Onion by repeat infringers in appropriate circumstances.

Email Spam

Emerald Onion does not host email services.

Contact Info

Requests may be sent to abuse@emeraldonion.org. If email is not an option, our mailing address is:

Emerald Onion
600 1st Ave Ste 330
PMB 279488
Seattle, WA 98104-2246
United States