The Tor Project announced on Thursday that it has merged operations with the security-focused operating system Tails. 

The maintainer of the Tor privacy and anonymity network has worked closely with Tails for nearly a decade and they have now decided to pool their resources for their shared goal of protecting journalists, activists, and other high-risk users against surveillance and censorship.

Discussions about a potential merger started in late 2023, after Tails concluded that it had outgrown its existing structure. 

A representative of the Debian-based Linux distribution pointed out that the technical part was not the most difficult. Instead, the project struggled with tasks like HR, finances, and fundraising.

“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,” the Tor Project said. 

“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 added.

The Tor anonymity network and the Tails OS offer complementary protections and they are often used together, and the merger will bring more improvements in terms of network and system security. 

In addition, with Tails integrated into its educational efforts, Tor will be able to address a wider range of privacy 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,” the Tor Project said.

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