Bug#725445: wiki.debian.org: Sometimes blocked with 403 Forbidden, using Tor
On Sun, Oct 06, 2013 at 01:15:25AM +0200, intrigeri@debian.org wrote:
>Package: wiki.debian.org
>Severity: normal
>X-Debbugs-Cc: weasel@debian.org
>
>Hi there,
>
>first of all, many thanks for maintaining wiki.d.o. This is an
>important service for our community, and your work is very
>much appreciated.
>
>Now, at least since 2 weeks (as far as can remember I've noticed),
>from time to time I am experiencing this pattern:
>
> 1. I'm browsing wiki.d.o, all right, so far, so good.
>
> 2. I click on an internal wiki link, or open a new wiki page in
> a new page independently, and then:
> * Title: 403 Forbidden
> * Body: "Forbidden
> You are not allowed to access this!"
> And same for every page on the Debian wiki.
>
> 3. A few minutes later, I can reload the page and it works fine.
>
>In case it matters (and I suspect it does), I'm using the Tor
>anonymizing network (https://www.torproject.org/). This means my
>apparent client IP address is one of a Tor exit node, and is
>potentially shared with a number of other clients.
>
>Every few minutes, Tor switches circuits, so my apparent IP changes,
>which might explain the third (and successful) step described above.
Yes, that will be it.
>The Debian wiki isn't blocking Tor entirely, else I could not access
>it at all (and this bug report would have severity>>normal). But some
>websites implement per-IP rate limiting or other clever anti-DoS
>server-side tricks, that result in a similar user experience, for Tor
>users, to the one I've described above. Maybe that's the case on
>wiki.d.o?
We have quite a large blacklist of IPs and address ranges for the
Debian wiki, set up to block spammers. I'm afraid that it looks like
Tor access is collateral damage from that. There's little I can do
about this, I'm afraid.
--
Steve McIntyre, Cambridge, UK. steve@einval.com
There's no sensation to compare with this
Suspended animation, A state of bliss
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