I came across this thread from the weekly news post for this week, so please excuse me if I've missed some from just skimming through the posts.

Having randomart/gravatars/poems/etc seems like a rather interesting topic, but seriously adding it to tor, there seems to be a few problems in my mind: a) This doesn't stop someone from phishing if the target has never seen the hs address before. (proving identities is another issue though I guess, the focus on this discussion being how to implement TOFU.) b) People's memories are imperfect and even if with a system that may generate wildly distinct results even with similar addresses, remembering a number of those will become a blur. c) This all seems rather complicated.

Since the point seems to just be keeping a record that addresses match once you're reasonably sure you've found the right one, wouldn't something of an "address book" be much simpler and easier? It might not even need to be a feature of tor/tbb, but maybe just a tip to users.

It could be something as simple as a gpg-encrypted text file if you're worried about leaking sites you visit. (I hope I don't get much about using "gpg" and "simple" in the same sentence.)

Another few things popped up in my mind while thinking about this: - Should tbb distribute hsts preload-like lists for HS's (eg for securedrops?) - A set of guidelines should be published on how an HS owner should prove their identity. (wouldn't want another sigaint incident!) - Can/should a system be set up to monitor HS addresses that are similar to existing ones? - For HS's which do not need to be as anonymous, should a tor-specific CA be created, or be encouraged to try and use a CA as a means of extra verification? A tor-specific CA might be better, since an attacker might be able to get their phishing cert signed. If the previous point is implemented, more precautions could be put in place to verify an HS's identity.