We take the security of our clients and their communications extremely seriously. Before you contact us, please read about our approach to security & trust.
For Prospective Whistleblowers
A Note About Trust
We seek to build trust at every opportunity. It might not be comfortable sending large amounts of sensitive information at the outset. If you have details you don’t wish to share now, please share as much as you are comfortable with. If we might be able to help you, then you can share more details after we meet in person.
SECUREDROP
The most secure way to reach Whistleblower Aid is over a system called SecureDrop, using Tor Browser. It is easy to use, but it will take you about five minutes to send us a message. SecureDrop is not as quick as firing off an email. But it’s vastly more secure. We recommend SecureDrop for prospective clients who may be worried about identification (unmasking / de-anonymizing) or retaliation, or who are reporting on particularly sensitive issues.
SIGNAL
Prospective clients can also reach us over the encrypted messaging app Signal. Signal is a trusted tool for those with a need to communicate privately in a wide range of situations. Signal may not be right for highly sensitive communications but it is easy to install and use and reasonably secure where anonymity is less of a concern.
ATTORNEY-CLIENT PRIVILEGE
Initial communications between lawyers and prospective clients for the purpose of deciding whether or not to establish legal representation are protected by attorney-client privilege. We will protect all your communications as much as possible.
NO CLASSIFIED INFORMATION
Whistleblower Aid does not accept classified information. Whistleblower Aid will never assist prospective or current clients with leaking classified information. Because we do not wish to receive classified documents from anyone, we have deliberately disabled the functionality to send documents to us over SecureDrop. Our custom installation of SecureDrop has been modified to permit only text messages.
ENCRYPTED SERVICES & MEMBERS OF THE U.S. INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY
We understand that some members of the U.S. intelligence community may be hesitant to utilize encrypted services like Tor Browser and Signal. Therefore, we recommend that you ask a trusted friend or family member (not in the IC) to install one of these services on their device and send messages on your behalf until we can meet.
Secure Connections
Media Contact
You may sign up for our email newsletter using the form at the bottom of this page.
For public announcements, you may follow us on Twitter @wbaidlaw.
Members of the media can learn more and request interviews by emailing us at [email protected].
Clients and supporters should NEVER attempt to reach Whistleblower Aid through this insecure email channel. Email cannot protect your identity. Instead, follow the instructions on our contact page.
