Last month we asked you to nominate the beneficiaries of our 2023 Lifetime Account Charity Fundraiser(new window). You came through with hundreds of suggestions, and today we’re announcing this year’s recipients and launching the fundraiser.
You can buy raffle tickets for a chance to win one of 10 Proton Lifetime accounts from now until January 1 at 11:59 PM CET. We’ll announce the winners the following day.
Thanks to your continuous support, our annual charity fundraiser has reached its sixth edition, and in total has contributed over $2,000,000 towards causes that that have a positive impact on privacy, freedom, and human rights around the world.
Like in previous years, we’re raffling 10 Lifetime accounts with all proceeds going to charity.
What’s new this year
For the first time, we’re introducing two new components to the charity fundraiser.
First, we’re going to be giving away a free Lifetime account to one lucky follower on selected social media profiles. So be sure to follow us on Twitter/X(new window), Instagram(new window), BlueSky(new window), and Mastodon(new window) by January 1 for a chance to become a Proton Lifetime supporter.
Second, we’re auctioning off three one-letter Proton usernames with their respective email addresses and adding the proceeds to our donation. The three usernames/addresses we’re auctioning are a, m, and x. This allows you to have a short email address like x[at]proton.me. The ‘a’ username is being donated by Proton founder and CEO Dr. Andy Yen.
Exceptionally, these unique one-letter usernames are transferable and come with the right of resale, so you can freely resell or gift them to others.
The auctions will run for 10 days starting from 3:00 PM CET | 9:00 AM EST on December 19, 2023. The winner will get the opportunity to purchase the username they bid on and receive a complimentary goodie box. These usernames do not include a paid Proton plan. If you win the auction, please contact us at community[at]proton.me.
Where the funds will go this year
As always, our fundraiser will support organizations who fight for freedom and democracy and align with our mission to build an internet where privacy and security are the default.
All proceeds, along with a $100,000 contribution from Proton, will go to 10 organizations that were nominated by the Proton community, with a portion of the funds also going to support some of the organizations that we have previously supported. The 10 organizations we’re supporting this year are:
- Bellingcat
- Freedom of the Press Foundation
- Tor
- Tactical Tech
- Public Knowledge
- La Quadrature du Net
- Liberties
- Bits of Freedom
- Forbidden Stories
- Medecins Sans Frontieres
You can find a detailed description of this year’s beneficiaries and why they are worthy of support at the bottom of this post, and you can also find all previous beneficiaries on Proton’s impact page(new window).
How to participate in the raffle
You can purchase raffle tickets from the Proton Shop for $10 each. Each ticket grants you an entry in the raffle and you can purchase as many tickets as you like for more chances to win.
Sales will end at 11:59 PM CET on January 1, 2024. Then on January 2, we’ll randomly draw the 10 lucky winners who will win a Lifetime account and a supporter goodie box.
Read our fundraiser’s terms and conditions(new window)
What is a Proton Lifetime account?
The Proton Lifetime account is our most exclusive account — the only way to get one is during our year-end fundraiser or by finding one on the secondary market. This account gives you all features on all current and future Proton services, as well as the most storage.
Lifetime accounts are transferable, and Proton can facilitate such transactions. The last time Lifetime accounts were auctioned in 2020(new window), they sold for over $14,000. As Proton continues to add more services, Lifetime accounts will provide more and more value.
In the last year alone, we have launched our password manager Proton Pass(new window), Proton Drive apps for Windows(new window) and Mac(new window), photo backup for Android(new window), Proton Sentinel(new window) (our high-security program), and much more.
Lifetime accounts are extremely rare, and the raffle is the only way to obtain one, plus you will be supporting good causes.
The 2023 Proton Fundraiser Beneficiaries
Bellingcat
Bellingcat is an independent investigative collective of researchers, investigators and citizen journalists brought together by a passion for open source research and dedicated to advancing its use for the global common good.
→ Learn more about Bellingcat(new window)
Freedom of the Press Foundation
Freedom of the Press Foundation is a nonprofit that furthers public-interest journalism in the US and around the world. The organization works to preserve and strengthen the constitutional rights guaranteed to the press by developing encryption tools, documenting attacks on the press, training newsrooms on digital security practices, and advocating for the public’s right to know.
→ Learn more about Freedom of the Press Foundation(new window)
The Tor Project
Tor is a nonprofit whose mission is to advance human rights and freedoms by creating and deploying free and open source anonymity and privacy technologies, supporting their unrestricted availability and use, and furthering their scientific and popular understanding. The group’s Tor Browser enables private and uncensored web browsing.
→ Learn more about(new window) the Tor Project(new window)
Tactical Tech
Tactical Tech is an international NGO that, for over 20 years, has engaged with citizens and civil society organizations to explore and mitigate the impacts of technology on society. Based in Berlin, the organization designs experiences, events and educational resources that invite people to think about how technology influences their lives and changes the world they live in while encouraging proactive solutions.
→ Learn more about Tactical Tech(new window)
Public Knowledge
Public Knowledge is a D.C.-based consumer advocacy group working at the intersection of copyright, telecommunications, and internet law that pushes for freedom of expression, net neutrality, online privacy, affordable broadband access, digital platform competition, and other policies that benefit the public.
→ Learn more about Public Knowledge(new window)
La Quadrature du Net
La Quadrature du Net is a Paris-based activist group that fights against digital censorship and surveillance and works toward a free, decentralized, and emancipatory internet. It seeks to implement these objectives through various means, including legal and political monitoring, lobbying, public awareness campaigns, and the development of practical and activist tools.
→ Learn more about La Quadrature du Net(new window)
Liberties (Civil Liberties Union for Europe)
The Berlin-based Civil Liberties Union for Europe is a watchdog network that protects the human rights of everyone in the European Union. It runs advocacy and educational campaigns and legal work on issues such as media freedom, free speech, surveillance, privacy, and the misuse of AI.
→ Learn more about Liberties(new window)
Bits of Freedom
Bits of Freedom is a Dutch foundation whose mission is to influence legislation and policy in the Netherlands and the EU. It focuses on the advancement of two rights: freedom of communication and privacy. The group researches new legislation and new technology and translates its insights into policy advice, campaigns, awareness-raising and legal action.
→ Learn more about Bits of Freedom(new window)
Forbidden Stories
Forbidden Stories is a network of journalists whose mission is to pursue the investigations of other reporters who have been murdered. By bringing to light critical information on topics ranging from environmental crimes, human rights violations, and corruption, the network sends a clear message to those who seek to silence the press: Killing the journalist won’t kill the story.
→ Learn more about Forbidden Stories(new window)
Medecins Sans Frontieres
In a time of war and mass civilian casualties, MSF provides critical medical assistance in conflict zones around the world to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from healthcare. Its teams are made up of tens of thousands of health professionals and logistics and administrative staff — most of them hired locally. The organization’s actions are guided by medical ethics and the principles of impartiality, independence and neutrality.
→ Learn more about Medecins Sans Frontieres(new window)
The community fundraiser makes a difference
Combined, the Proton community has helped raise over $2 million to support organizations making a positive impact around the world. In some cases, these donations represent a transformational windfall leading to faster product development, more independent journalism, and timely public awareness on critical digital rights policy.
- Fight for the Future used our funding(new window) to push for digital privacy protections and stronger antitrust laws to break the monopoly power of Big Tech.
- We funded NetBlocks(new window), which monitors government censorship around the world.
- Charter’97(new window) received funding to pursue independent journalism in Belarus despite being targeted by the government.
- Our donations to organizations like WireGuard(new window) and Tor(new window) facilitate the tools that are the backbone of private internet browsing.
- And much more…(new window)
None of this would be possible without your generous participation in our annual charity fundraisers and your support for the open source encryption tools we’re building at Proton.
Thank you for another successful year, and good luck in the raffle!
