How to install Tails OS (Guide for the Ultra Paranoid)

Using the Tor Browser, visit the official Tails website.

Once your .ISO file has finished downloading, you will verify that the file has not been corrupted or modified using the GNU Privacy Assistant.

Download the signing key and grab the signature of the software.

Open GNU Privacy Assistant and open up Key Manager and create a New Key.

Import the Tails Signing key into GNU Privacy Assistant, and verify that the Validity of your downloaded key is showing valid.

Using Tor, go to pgp.mit.edu and enter Tails Developers into the Search String field.

Ensure the option for Show PGP fingerprints for keys is checked, then click Search.

Compare the fingerprint generated from GNU Privacy Assistant to the fingerprint shown by pgp. If they are the same, then the file is safe to use.

Once you have finished verifying the file, you will need to sign the software key with your key in GNU Privacy Assistant

Right-click the key you created in Step 3 and select Sign Keys and use the passprase you used with your private key.

Once signed your key should read Fully Valid under the Validity column.

You can check the validity of your Tails OS image file by importing the file directly into GNU Privacy Assistant and clicking the Check Signatures of Selected File. If the file has not been modifyed then you should get a message indicating the file is valid.

For Linux Distributions, it is highly recommended that you use 'dd' to write to your USB drive since it will be preinstalled on your system. Use the command listed below with the appropriate file extension and drive names without the parenthesis.

sudo dd if=[name of Tails Image File] of=/dev/[Name of your USB drive] bs=16M oflag=direct status=progress

You now have a live USB of Tails OS. From here you can insert the drive into a different computer and use it, or you can reboot your current computer and boot from your USB drive.

Insert the Tails live USB into the computer you want to use.

Restart the computer and enter the boot menu by pressing the appropriate key during startup (usually F2, F12, or Delete).

Select the USB drive as the boot device from the boot menu.

Tails will start, and you'll be presented with the Tails Greeter screen.

When you first boot into Tails OS you will be greeted with a welcome screen. You can set your default keyboard layout and language settings on this screen, however, it is highly recommended that you set an administrator password.

From the Welcome Screen select the + button in the Additional Settings section and set a password in the Administrator Password section

Once you're satisfied with the initial options click Start Tails to boot to your Tails Desktop.

Once you have booted to your desktop, you will want to set up your network and connect to Tor.

Open the System Menu from the Upper Right-hand corner and click Wi-Fi. Choose your network and enter your login credentials.

Once connected to your network the Tor Connection Assistant will open automatically. Select the Hide to my local network that I'm connecting to Tor

Once connected open the Tor Browser from the Applications Tab and go to the More Options button on the far right, and click Settings from the dropdown menu.

Choose Privacy and Security and under Onion Services make sure the Always option is selected.

Scroll down to the Security Level section and make sure the Safest option is selected.