Show HN: BlankTrace – a Rust‑based MitM proxy to anonymize browser traffic

28 minutes ago 1

ANONYMOUS BY DESIGN.
The Cross-Platform Rust CLI Proxy that Kills Tracing.

BlankTrace is a powerful, cross-platform (Linux/macOS) Rust CLI/daemon MITM proxy that anonymizes browser traffic by randomizing digital fingerprints, blocking invasive trackers, and stripping identifying cookies.

Fingerprint Randomization

Random User-Agent (using `rand_agents` for realism) and Accept-Language headers are rotated to hide your unique browser signature.

Cookie & Tracker Blocking

Block all cookies, strip them from requests, and apply regex-based domain blocking with full whitelist control.

MITM Proxy & Logging

Runs as an HTTP/HTTPS proxy on `localhost:8080`. Async SQLite logging tracks all activity, blocks, and rotations.

1. Build & Run Proxy

Get up and running in minutes using Rust's cargo toolchain. The proxy automatically generates a CA certificate for HTTPS interception.

$ cargo build --release

$ cargo run blanktrace

⚠️ Important: You must trust the generated CA certificate in your browser for HTTPS interception to work.

2. CLI Management

Manage the daemon, view real-time statistics, and control domain lists directly from the command line.

$ cargo run blanktrace stats

$ cargo run blanktrace domains --limit 10

$ cargo run blanktrace whitelist --domain example.com

$ cargo run blanktrace export --file export.json

Customizing behavior via `config.yaml`

Fine-tune fingerprint rotation, cookie policies, and domain blocking patterns to suit your specific privacy needs.

fingerprint: rotation_mode: "launch" # every_request, interval, launch rotation_interval: 3600 # seconds (for interval mode) randomize_user_agent: true randomize_accept_language: true strip_referer: true cookies: block_all: true log_attempts: true auto_block_trackers: true allow_list: - "github.com" - "stackoverflow.com" blocking: auto_block: true block_patterns: - ".*analytics.*" - ".*doubleclick.*" port: 8080 db_path: "blanktrace.db"

Current Status & Architecture

Full Proxy Functionality: HTTP/HTTPS Interception with hudsucker 0.4.
Realistic Randomization: Uses the `rand_agents` crate for high-quality, diverse user agents.
Modular Rust Architecture: Dedicated modules for proxy, database, randomizer, and blocker for maintainability and performance.
Limitation: Manual CA certificate installation is required for HTTPS.

SQLite Logging

All activity is logged asynchronously, tracking domains, IPs, cookie traffic, and fingerprint rotations for full transparency.

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Show HN: BlankTrace – a Rust‑based MitM proxy to anonymize browser traffic