Fun fact: I operated a TOR node for a while (not an exit node). It was in a datacenter and I mostly got yelled at because the IP was flagged as malicious outbound and the reputation of the IP range was degraded. I stopped the node but I still have the IP adress which is still inaccessible to most office workers years after ;-).
At no time did I think that I was risking jail time if my computer was seized. I'm lucky enough to live in a democratic country and I have a clean conscience.
There are two main types of people who are interested in TOR, the defence of privacy and the development of privacy protection software:
- Those who think about the situation of homosexuals and journalists in countries where they risk the death penalty or life imprisonment. Police state, government overreach, woman health, etc...
- Those who live in democratic countries but have a lot to hide.
The two populations coexist but do not mix.