The Tor Project is teaming up with Tails, a Linux-based portable OS focused on privacy

The Tor Project includes working with Tails, a Linux-based portable program focused on preserving user privacy and anonymity.

The merger comes after ongoing digital surveillance and regulatory directives to curb end-to-end encryption, while censorship of internet services also remains firmly on the global agenda.

Tails will be incorporated into the “Tor Project architecture,” which will allow for “easier collaboration, better stability, cost reduction, and increased training and outreach programs to combat the vast number of digital threats,” according to a blog post published today by Tor Project’s PR & communications director, Pavel Zoneff. .

Two become one

Founded in 2006, the Tor Project is a non-profit organization best known for its work on Tor (“The Onion Router”), a privacy-focused network that anonymizes the Internet by routing it across many different servers, encrypting data along the way. The Tor Project develops browsers for all major operating systems, and some of the world’s largest technology companies have adopted Tor to support a variety of privacy-focused initiatives.

Tails, on the other hand, sports a pre-installed desktop environment and is built on Debian-based Linux distributions. It is lightweight, and can be booted from portable storage devices, such as a USB drive, leaving little in the way of digital media.

Tor and Tails open source projects are no strangers to each other. Originally released in 2009, Tails, or the “Amnesic Incognito Live System,” connects to the Internet automatically through Tor. In addition, Tails has received funding from many third-party organizations and foundations over the years – including the Tor Project itself, which funded the project’s developer services.

Combining the Tor Project and Tails makes a lot of sense, given their respective focus on internet privacy and anonymity, not to mention their shared history. It may also prove beneficial for those most vulnerable in a world approaching 24/7 digital surveillance, activists, journalists, and anyone at risk of being tracked online can be a useful resource here.

Indeed, none other than Edward Snowden has sung the praises of both platforms, and he has previously claimed to have used the tail as part of his whistleblowing efforts against the US National Security Agency (NSA) more than 10 years ago.

The merger took place following the path that Tails made to the Tor Project by the end of 2023, according to the blog. Tails noted that it had “outgrown its current structure.”

“Running Tails as an independent project for 15 years has been a huge effort, but not for the reasons you might expect,” Intrigeri, the team behind Tails OS, said in a statement. “The hardest part wasn’t technical – it was handling critical functions like fundraising, finance and HR. After trying to handle those in different ways, I’m really relieved that Tails is now under the wing of the Tor Project. “

By pooling their resources, including technology and staff, the Tor Project says it will be better equipped to address “the threat of global mass surveillance and censorship of the free Internet.” This will include expanding the scope of the Tor Project to “address a broader range of privacy needs and security scenarios,” which will include closer technical alignment, in addition to improving education, training and outreach programs.

“By combining these two organizations, we are not only making things easier for our teams, but we are ensuring the sustainable development and advancement of these important tools,” said Isabela Fernandes, executive director of the Tor Project, in a statement. “Working together allows for faster, more efficient collaboration, allowing for faster integration of new features from one tool to another.”