[[!meta title="Launching our donation campaign for 2020"]]

[[!meta date="Mon, 07 Oct 2019 15:00:55 +0000"]]

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The mission of Tails is to empower people worldwide by giving out an operating system that protects from surveillance and censorship.

We build liberating technology to put people in control of their digital lives, keeping in mind that the most vulnerable and oppressed people are also the most in need of privacy and security:

Journalists and whistleblowers use Tails to denounce the wrongdoings of governments and corporations.

Activists use Tails to avoid surveillance and organize their struggles for liberatory social change.

Human-rights defenders use Tails to avoid censorship and report human-rights violations.

Domestic violence survivors use Tails to escape surveillance in their homes.

Privacy-concerned citizens use Tails to avoid online tracking.

And we give out Tails for free because nobody should have to pay to be safe while using computers.

However, Tails needs funds to keep up the fight and we know that people who need Tails the most cannot always donate: because they would get in trouble for giving to an anti-surveillance tool or simply because they don't have the money.

Why supporting Tails is more important than ever

The [2019 World Press Freedom Index](https://rsf.org/en/2019-world-press-freedom-index-cycle-fear) compiled by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) shows how hatred of journalists has degenerated into violence, contributing to an increase in fear. The number of countries regarded as safe, where journalists can work in complete security, continues to decline, while authoritarian regimes continue to tighten their grip on the media.

According to the [2019 Report by United Nations' Special Rapporteur David Kaye](https://daccess-ods.un.org/access.nsf/Get?Open&DS=A/HRC/41/35&Lang=E), surveillance of individuals – often journalists, activists, opposition figures, critics and others exercising their right to freedom of expression – thrives because of weak controls on exports and transfers of surveillance technology to repressive governments. This surveillance is known to lead to arbitrary detention, sometimes to torture and possibly to extrajudicial killings.

These technologies include targeted malware, online interception of network communications, and deep packet inspection; all technologies that Tails is one of the best tool to protect from while reducing the risk of dangerous mistakes.

A legal framework to regulate this surveillance industry, as recommended by David Kaye, might be useful for the future. But digital freedom tools like Tails are more needed than ever right now, in an act of empowerment and self-defense.

You are our best guarantee

We often hear complaints about software projects that are meant to fight surveillance, like Tor and Tails, getting funds from the US government. We share this concern and we will never be at ease as long as the well-being of our project depends on such funding.