Worried about the future of the internet? Tor launches crypto-powered fundraising initiative to secure internet freedoms — and your vote matters more than your wallet size | Tech Radar

Overview

News, deals, reviews, guides and more on the newest computing gadgets

Start exploring exclusive deals, expert advice and more

Details

Unlock and manage exclusive Techradar member rewards.

Unlock instant access to exclusive member features.

Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.

Worried about the future of the internet? Tor launches crypto-powered fundraising initiative to secure internet freedoms — and your vote matters more than your wallet size

The Tor Project and Funding the Commons have launched a Web 3-native campaign to financially support 10 crucial technologies

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Tor Project and Funding the Commons launch a Web 3-native crowdfunding

The initiative seeks to support 10 internet freedom nonprofits

People can donate to projects using cryptocurrencies until June 18, 2026

Internet freedom has been in decline for 15 consecutive years, the latest Freedom House report shows, with censorship and surveillance technology becoming increasingly pervasive. Meanwhile, the vital, open-source tools people rely on to stay safe online are facing systemic financial strain.

To combat this crisis, the Tor Project, the nonprofit behind the renowned Tor browser, has teamed up with Funding the Commons to launch a brand-new participatory funding campaign today.

While everyday internet users might rely on the best VPNs to mask their daily web traffic, activists, whistleblowers, and journalists in highly restricted regions depend on more specialized public-interest digital infrastructure. Unfortunately, financial pressures have forced many of these organizations to reduce staffing and scale back technical operations.

Beyond no-log: Tor looks into seizure-proof servers that forget your data

'Iranians are resilient; they always find ways to speak:' How Iranians are overcoming unprecedented internet censorship

The Tor Project takes a major step toward launching its mobile VPN with successful Cure 53 audit

This first-ever Web 3-native, community-driven crowdfunding initiative is entirely dedicated to the internet freedom ecosystem. It aims to support 10 crucial nonprofit projects working across privacy, censorship circumvention, and secure communications.

People can now donate to these selected projects using various cryptocurrencies until June 18, 2026 — and their picks matter more than their wallet size.

The campaign is utilizing a unique, community-driven model called quadratic funding. Instead of a traditional setup where massive single donations dictate the success of a fundraiser, this model prioritizes the sheer volume of unique contributors.

A spokesperson for the initiative explained to Tech Radar that such a model seeks to amplify funding based on community support.

Here, community members' donations act as votes on where funding should be allocated. A central matching pool then increases the amount projects receive using a formula that rewards those supported by the largest number of people, rather than just the highest value donations.

The spokesperson added a practical example: "Imagine there is a

10,000 matching pool and three projects each raise

1,000. One project receives donations from 2 people, another from 5 people, and another from 20 people. Even though all three projects raised the same amount, the project supported by 20 contributors receives the largest share of matching funds because it demonstrated the broadest community support."

Tomorrow, we’re launching something new: a way to make small contributions go further than they normally would. This only works if people show up. May 19.#Fund Internet Freedom@Secure Drop @guardianproject @BPFree Speech @Open Observatory @open_archive @unredacted_org… pic.twitter.com/rpu Dc Dloq CMay 18, 2026

The goal of quadratic funding is then to better capture what's needed across the community, while encouraging participation from smaller contributors to maximise the impact of available funding.

Nord VPN and Internews join forces to defend journalists and activists

Support global journalism and get a free Nord VPN subscription — here's how

2025 was the worst year on record for internet shutdowns as censors move to more targeted blocks

As David Casey, Director of Funding the Commons, puts it: "Institutional money follows community signals, not the other way around."

"Any donation moves the match pool, no matter the size, putting weight behind the projects Tor users rely on every day," Casey added.

Cake Wallet, Zcash Community Grants, Logos, and Octant have already provided a central matching pool of $115,000 USD. This pool is distributed based on how many individuals back a project.

The 10 projects benefiting from this initiative include heavy hitters like Secure Drop (a secure whistleblower submission system), Onion Share (anonymous file sharing), and the Open Observatory of Network Interference (a global observatory documenting internet censorship and shutdowns).

Other vital tools receiving support include Open Archive, Ricochet Refresh, Onion Browser, ASL19, Unredacted, Miaan Group, and Osservatorio Nessuno.

Users looking to contribute can donate via Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Zcash (ZEC), Monero (XMR), and Golem (GLM).

The campaign runs until June 18, 2026, and is accessible via the clear web at internetfreedom.torproject.org or through its dedicated Onion Service.

Rene Millman is a seasoned technology journalist whose work has appeared in The Guardian, the Financial Times, Computer Weekly, and IT Pro. With over two decades of experience as a reporter and editor, he specializes in making complex topics like cybersecurity, VPNs, and enterprise software accessible and engaging.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

1 Miniature cameras are trending, and you can't get smaller than these 9 digital models — and they all cost under $50

2 There's a massive summer speaker sale at Best Buy — up to $250 JBL, Beats, Sonos, Sony, and more

3NYC Health + Hospitals says mega data breach allowed hackers to steal personal data, medical records, and fingerprints scans of around 1.8 million people

4'Some aspects are as we intended and some are not' — Mullvad addresses Wire Guard exit-IP fingerprinting concern after researcher flags privacy risk

5 These 12 audiobooks taught me more about marketing than my business degree

Tech Radar is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Key Takeaways

News, deals, reviews, guides and more on the newest computing gadgets
Start exploring exclusive deals, expert advice and more
Unlock and manage exclusive Techradar member rewards
Unlock instant access to exclusive member features
Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards