Tor and Tails privacy projects merge

The Tor Project protects user privacy and anonymity on the network. Tails is a portable operating system that does so in the software. The two projects are merging, writes Pavel Zonaff, who hails the move as the "natural outcome of the Tor Project and Tails' shared history of collaboration and solidarity."

Countering the threat of global mass surveillance and censorship to a free Internet, Tor and Tails provide essential tools to help people around the world stay safe online. By joining forces, these two privacy advocates will pool their resources to focus on what matters most: ensuring that activists, journalists, other at-risk and everyday users will have access to improved digital security tools.

In late 2023, Tails approached the Tor Project with the idea of merging operations. Tails had outgrown its existing structure. Rather than expanding Tails's operational capacity on their own and putting more stress on Tails workers, merging with the Tor Project, with its larger and established operational framework, offered a solution. By joining forces, the Tails team can now focus on their core mission of maintaining and improving Tails OS, exploring more and complementary use cases while benefiting from the larger organizational structure of The Tor Project.

It seems a perfectly complementary merger that will result in a seamless user experience from the metal up for those with an interest in or need for anonymity online. Zoneff:

It will also open up broader training and outreach opportunities. Until now, Tor's educational efforts have primarily focused on its browser. With Tails integrated into these programs, we can address a wider range of privacy needs and security scenarios. Lastly, this merger will lead to increased visibility for Tails. Many users familiar with Tor may not yet know about Tails OS. By bringing Tails within the Tor Project umbrella, we can introduce this powerful tool to more individuals and groups needing to remain anonymous while working in hostile environments.

Isabela Fernandes, executive director of The Tor Project:

"By bringing these two organizations together, we're not just making things easier for our teams, but ensuring the sustainable development and advancement of these vital tools. Working together allows for faster, more efficient collaboration, enabling the quick integration of new features from one tool to the other. This collaboration strengthens our mission and accelerates our ability to respond to evolving threats"

Affordable open-source hardware seems like something of a mirage for practical intents and purposes—I read even Richard Stallman has a ThinkPad now.