In keeping with tradition, we are excited to share that this year’s Lifetime Account Charity Fundraiser begins today, 13 December 2021, and ends on 28 December 2021 at 11:59 PM CET.
We will announce the raffle winners on 29 December 2021.
Each year during the holiday season, we work with the Proton community to give back to causes that advance privacy and freedom. Over the past three years, we have raised over $400,000 and collectively made a global impact.
Last year, we introduced a raffle, which is more democratic than an auction as it gives more people a chance of winning a Lifetime account. Based on last year’s success, we will raffle six Lifetime accounts this year.
This year, 100% of the proceeds from our Lifetime Account Charity Fundraiser will go toward supporting Reporters Without Borders (RSF). We have worked with RSF in the past, so we have seen first-hand how much of an impact our fundraisers can have. In 2018, we donated funds to their Berlin Scholarship Program that trains journalists from conflict zones on how to stay safe online. We’re excited to deepen our partnership with RSF and do more together(new window).
The funds raised will help protect the freedom of speech in the many corners of the world where it is threatened. We will help fund programs to train, support, and protect journalists who are committed to reporting the truth, often under difficult circumstances.
Proton will make a donation matching the amount raised in the raffle, up to $100,000.
How to participate in the raffle
You can purchase raffle tickets from the Proton Shop for $10 each. There is no limit on how many tickets you can buy. At the end of the fundraiser, we will randomly select six winning tickets. The winners of this fundraiser will receive their Lifetime account for nothing more than the price of the raffle ticket(s) they purchased.
All tickets must be bought by 28 December 2021 from the Proton Shop, and the winners will be announced on 29 December 2021 on social media.
Read our raffle terms and conditions(new window)
What is a Lifetime account?
Proton Lifetime accounts give you the top-tier paid plan for all Proton products forever. Currently, that is our Visionary plan, which would normally cost €288/year.
This means Lifetime account holders get the top-tier paid plan for all current Proton products and any products we introduce in the future. Currently, the Proton suite consists of:
- Proton Mail(new window)
- Proto(new window)n VPN(new window)
- Proton Calendar(new window)
- Proton Drive(new window)
A Lifetime account also gives you early access to new Proton products before they are released to the public.
Lifetime accounts are the rarest Proton accounts in existence (only a couple hundred exist), and the only way to obtain them is through our annual fundraiser.
Lifetime accounts are transferable and can be resold. Because Lifetime accounts are so rare, Lifetime accounts have typically sold for over $10,000 in recent years.
(new window)Your generosity is building a better internet and society
As an organization that got its start via a crowdfunding project(new window), we know better than anyone the importance of community and what the Proton community can achieve when we work together.
This year, we look forward to giving RSF funds to support the following programs:
- The previously mentioned Berlin Scholarship Program, which trains conflict zone journalists on cybersecurity
- The Digital Security Lab(new window), which provides free online training about digital security concepts for journalists
- The Assistance(new window) program, which offers financial and logistical aid to reporters who fall victim to reprisals because of their work
Through the generosity of the Proton community, we have raised over $400,000 to support worthy causes, including:
- Charter’97(new window), one of the last independent news outlets in Belarus
- The World Wide Web Foundation’s Women’s Rights Online project(new window), which works to close the digital gender gap by improving internet access for women in developing countries
- The Markup(new window), a newsroom that investigates how Big Tech is impacting society
- The development of WireGuard(new window), an advanced, lightweight, and open-source VPN protocol
- The development of Tails, the portable operating system(new window) that expands the protection of the Tor network to your entire computer
- And many other worthy organizations
Thank you to the entire Proton community for all you have done and continue to do. And good luck to everyone who buys a ticket in the raffle.
Happy holidays!
P.S. Don’t forget, the raffle ends on 28 December 2021!
Please share any feedback or questions you have on Twitter(new window) and Reddit(new window).
