webwml/donate/en/donor-faq.wml
2016-06-01 21:26:55 -04:00

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# Revision: $Revision$
# Translation-Priority: 3-low
#include "donatehead.wmi" TITLE="Donate to keep Tor alive!" CHARSET="UTF-8"
<div class="donation">
<div class="container">
<div class="row text-justify">
<div class="col-md-12 col-md-offset-0">
<a href="<page donate/donate>" class="btn btn-primary btn-md active" role="button">Back to donate page!</a>
</div>
<div class="col-md-12 col-md-offset-0">
<h2 style="padding:2px; margin-bottom:10px;" class="text-justify">Donor FAQ</h2>
<ol>
<li>
<p><strong>What is the Tor Project and what does it do?</strong></p>
<p>The Tor Projects mission is to advance human rights
and freedoms by creating and deploying free and open
anonymity and privacy technologies, supporting their
unrestricted availability and use, and furthering their
scientific and popular understanding. The main product of
the Tor Project is the Tor Browser, which enables people
to browse the internet anonymously. The Tor Project is a
501(c)3 tax-exempt non-profit organization based in Boston,
Massachusetts. It was founded in 2006.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Who works for the Tor Project, and what do they do?</strong></p>
<p>Thousands people around the world actively support the
work of the Tor Project, including developers, designers,
relay operators, researchers, cryptographers, computer
scientists, and privacy advocates, and most are not paid
by the Tor Project. The paid staff of the Tor Project
is very small: about 20 people in total. You can read
about the core contributors to the Tor Project on our <a
href="<page about/corepeople>"
target="_blank">Core People page</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Who uses Tor?</strong></p>
<p>The vast majority of Tor users are ordinary people who
want control of their privacy online or people whose internet
use is censored. Other Tor users are journalists, human
rights defenders, domestic violence survivors, policymakers,
diplomats, and academic and research institutions.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Can anyone use Tor?</strong></p>
<p>Yes! Tor is free, and anyone can
use it. To get started, you will need to <a
href="<page projects/torbrowser>"
target="_blank">download the Tor browser</a>. We
offer instructions on how to download for <a
href="<page projects/torbrowser>#windows"
target="_blank">Windows</a>, <a
href="<page projects/torbrowser>#macosx"
target="_blank">Mac OS X</a> and <a
href="<page projects/torbrowser>#linux"
target="_blank">Linux</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>What kinds of people support Tor?</strong></p>
<p>All kinds of people. Thousands of individuals have donated
to support the Tor Project, and we have also received funding
from a wide range of organizations including Google, the Ford
Foundation, the Knight Foundation, Reddit, the U.S. National
Science Foundation, the Electronic Frontier Foundation,
Human Rights Watch, the Swedish International Development
Cooperation Agency, the Federal Foreign Office of Germany,
the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Omidyar Network, SRI
International, and Radio Free Asia. People also support Tor in
non-financial ways, for example by running Tor relays and exit
nodes. In addition, everybody who uses Tor is helping to keep
other users safe and anonymous, because the more people using
Tor, the harder it is to identify any single individual</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>How does the Tor software work to protect people's anonymity?</strong></p>
<p>Tor protects you by bouncing your communications around
the Tor network, which is a distributed network of relays
run by volunteers all around the world. If someone is
watching your internet connection, Tor prevents them
from finding out what sites you are visiting. It also
prevents sites you visit from finding out where you're
located. You can read more about how Tor works on our <a
href="<page about/overview>"
target="_blank">overview page</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>I would like to know more about how Tor works,
what hidden services are, or how to run a relay.</strong></p>
<p><a href="<page docs/faq>"
target="_blank">This Tor Project FAQ</a> has answers to all
those questions, and more.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Does the Tor software work?</strong></p>
<p>We believe Tor is the best solution available today,
and we know that it does a better job of keeping you
safely anonymous than other options such as VPNs,
proxychains, or browser "private browsing" modes. We
know that both the Russian government and the NSA
have tried in the past to crack Tor, and failed. The
Electronic Frontier Foundation says that Tor offers "<a
href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2014/07/7-things-you-should-know-about-tor"
target="_blank">some of the strongest anonymity software
that exists</a>, and in his book Data and Goliath, security
expert Bruce Schneier wrote "The current best tool to protect
your anonymity when browsing the web is Tor."</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Is what Tor does legal? Can I get in trouble for
using it?</strong></p>
<p>Downloading the Tor browser or using the Tor network
is legal in nearly every country. A few web sites
occasionally block Tor, but that doesn't mean you're
doing anything wrong. Usually it means that site has had
difficulties with visitors who've been using Tor in the
past, or that they misunderstand what Tor is and how it
works (were working to change this). But it is not
illegal to use Tor, and you shouldn't get in trouble for
doing it. You can find more information about Tor's legal
status <a href="https://www.eff.org/torchallenge/faq.html"
target="_blank">on the EFF site</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Where can I find out more about the Tor Project,
especially financial information?</strong></p>
<p>Here are the Tor Project's <a
href="<page about/financials>"
target="_blank">financial statements, and its Form
990</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Where does the Tor Project's money come
from?</strong></p>
<p>Tor is supported by United States government funding
agencies, NGOs, private foundations, research institutions,
private companies, and nearly 8,000 personal donations
from people like you. The exact percentage varies by year,
but in any given year, 80-90% of the Tor Project's funding
comes from United States government funding sources. See
<a href="<page about/sponsors>"
target="_blank">https://www.torproject.org/about/sponsors</a>
for more.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>How much money does the Tor Project spend annually,
and what is it used for?</strong></p>
<p>The Tor Project spends about $2.5 million annually. About
80% of the Tor Project's spending goes on staffing, mostly
software engineers. About 10% goes towards administrative
costs such as accounting and legal costs and bank fees. The
remaining 10% is spent on travel, meetings and conferences,
which are important for Tor because the Tor community is
global.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Is my donation tax-deductible?</strong></p>
<p>If you pay taxes in the United States, your donation to
Tor is tax deductible to the full extent required by law. The
tax ID number for the Tor Project is 20-8096820.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>If I am not in the United States, can I still
donate?</strong></p>
<p>Yes, definitely. Your donation probably isn't
tax-deductible (unless you pay taxes on U.S. income) but we
would very much appreciate your support. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Am I right that the Tor Project has never asked
for donations before?</strong></p>
<p>Yes! We've had a donate button on the site for years,
and so far nearly 8,000 people have given money to the Tor
Project. But this is the first time we've actively sought
donations. To date, much of Tor Project funding has come
from United States federal funding sources, such as the
U.S. independent agency the International Broadcasting Bureau
(IBB) and the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Democracy,
Human Rights, and Labor (DRL). While we are grateful for
this funding, we don't want the Tor Project to become too
dependent on any single type of funding. Crowdfunding is
unrestricted--It allows us to spend the money on the projects
we think are most important and respond quickly to changing
events. And so, we are asking you to help financially support
us, to increase the Tor Project's independence and ensure the
sustainability of the products and services we provide.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Can I donate to a specific project, or restrict
my donation to a particular purpose?</strong></p>
<p>No, sorry. If we accept a donation from someone who has
specified how they want it used, we're required by the IRS
to track and report separately on that money. That would
be a big administrative burden for a small organization,
and we don't think it's a good idea for us. However, we
would be very happy to hear your ideas and feedback about
our work. If you're donating using a mechanism that allows
for comments, feel free to send your thoughts that way.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Can I donate while using the Tor browser?</strong></p>
<p>Maybe! In our testing, we saw two scenarios related to
Paypal + Tor browser:<br />
<ol>
<li>Sometimes you get an error after clicking on the
'Donate' button. If this is happening to you, you should
change your circuit and try again.</li>
<li>For users logging in to Paypal: some people had
no problem donating via PayPal while using the Tor
browser. But, some people couldn't complete the donation
process, and one person had their PayPal account temporarily
frozen. We recommend not using the Tor browser to donate
using your PayPal account, unless you're willing to risk
some difficulties with PayPal.</li>
</ol></p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>How can I donate via debit or credit card?</strong></p>
<p>To donate using a major credit card or debit card (VISA,
MasterCard, Discover or American Express) or via PayPal,
please visit our donate page. You do not need to have a
PayPal account to donate via credit card.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Why do you ask for my address and similar
information?</strong></p>
<p>If you donate by credit card, you will be asked for some
information that's required to process your credit card
payment, including your billing address. This allows our
payment processor to verify your identity, process your
payment, and prevent fraudulent charges to your credit
card. We don't ask for information beyond what's required
by the payment processor.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Why is there a minimum donation?</strong></p>
<p>People who have stolen credit card information often
donate to nonprofits as a way of testing whether the card
works. These people typically use a very small amount for
their testing, and we've found that setting a $1 minimum
donation seems to deter them.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Is there a maximum donation?</strong></p>
<p>No, no, no! More funding from you means we can do more
things we are excited to do, like hire a person to monitor
the Tor network full time, or research, test, and implement
ideas we have for making the Tor network even stronger.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Can I donate via bitcoin?</strong></p>
<p>Yes! We accept <a
href="<page donate/donate-options>"
target="_blank">bitcoin via BitPay</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>If I want my donation to be anonymous, what is
the best way for me to donate?</strong></p>
<p>You can donate by <a href="<page
donate/donate-options>#cash">mailing cash</a>.
You can donate via bitcoin
if you have bitcoin set up in a way that preserves your
anonymity. You can buy cash gift cards and mail them to
us. There are probably other ways to donate anonymously that
we haven't thought of-- maybe you will :)</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Is the Tor Project required to identify me as
a donor to the United States government, or to any other
authority?</strong></p>
<p>If you donate $5,000 or more to the Tor Project in a single
year, we are required to report the donation amount and your
name and address (if we have it) to the IRS, on Schedule
B of the Form 990, which is filed annually. However, it's
normal for nonprofits to redact individual donor information
from the copy of the 990 that's made publicly-available, and
that's what we do. We are not required to identify donors to
any other organization or authority, and we do not. (Also,
if you wanted, you could give us $4,999 in late 2015 and
$4,999 in early 2016 ;)</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>In your privacy policy, you say you will never
publicly identify me as a donor without my permission. What
does that mean?</strong></p>
<p>Yes, that's right. If you donate to the Tor Project, there
will be some people at the Tor Project who know about your
donation. However, we will never publicly identify you as
a donor, unless you have given us permission to do so. That
means we won't post your name on our website, thank you on
Twitter, or do anything else that would publicly identify
you as someone who has donated. If we decide we would like
to publicly name you as a donor, we will ask you first,
and will not do it until and unless you say it's okay.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>It's important to me that my donation be
tax-deductible, but I don't pay taxes in the United
States. </strong></p>
<p>Right now, we can only offer tax-deductibility to
donors who pay taxes in the United States. If it's
important to you that your donations be tax-deductible
in a different country, let us know and we will
try to offer tax-deductibility in your country in
future. Or, if you are in Germany, France or Sweden, <a
href="<page docs/faq>#RelayDonations"
target="_blank">these organizations support the Tor
network</a> and may be able to offer you tax-deductibility
for your donation.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>What if I don't want to use PayPal? Is there
another way I can donate? </strong></p>
<p>Yes! Here is a list of <a
href="<page donate/donate-options>"
target="_blank">other ways you can donate</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>What is your donor privacy policy?</strong></p>
<p>Here is the Tor Project <a
href="<page donate/donor-privacy-policy>" target="_blank">donor
privacy policy</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>What is your refund policy?</strong></p>
<p>If you want your donation refunded, please tell us
by emailing donations(at)torproject.org. To process your
refund we'll need to know the date of your donation, the
amount you donated, your full name, the payment method you
used and your country of origin. Please also tell us why
you're asking for a refund. Please note that some payment
methods won't support refunds, or require them to be made
in a specific way, so we may need additional information
from you in order to process yours.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Can I donate by mail?</strong></p>
<p>Yes. Our mailing address is The Tor Project, 217 1st Ave S #4903,
Seattle WA 98194, USA</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Do you accept cash donations?</strong></p>
<p>Yes.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Can I donate stock?</strong></p>
<p>Yes! Many companies --such as Google, Microsoft, eBay,
PayPal, Apple, Verizon, Red Hat, many universities,
and others-- will match donations made by their
employees. The fastest way to find out if your company
matches donations is usually by checking with your
HR department, or you can search for your company
name at <a href="https://www.matchinggifts.com/rit/"
target="_blank">https://www.matchinggifts.com/rit/</a>. If
your company isn't currently set up to match donations
to the Tor Project, we would be happy to help with the
paperwork. If you want help figuring out the process, write
us at donations(at)torproject.org.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Can I become a Tor Project member?</strong></p>
<p>Right now, we don't have a membership program, but we may
set one up in the future. If you want to get involved with
the Tor Project, <a href="<page getinvolved/volunteer>">this
is a good place to start</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>How can I get a Tor t-shirt or stickers?</strong></p>
<p>If you donate $23 or more, you will get stickers we
created just for this campaign. And if you donate $100 or
more, you will get a special 'Tor supporter' t-shirt!</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>If I want to stay in touch with the Tor Project,
what's the best way for me to do that?</strong></p>
<p>You can sign up to receive the <a
href="https://lists.torproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/tor-news"
target="_blank">Tor weekly newsletter</a>, read the <a
href="https://blog.torproject.org/" target="_blank">Tor
blog</a>, or <a href="https://twitter.com/torproject"
target="_blank">follow us on Twitter</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Does the Tor Project participate in the Combined
Federal Campaign program?</strong></p>
<p>No, Tor doesn't currently participate in the CFC
program. If you'd like to get Tor added to the CFC program
in your location, that would be great: please let us know
if you need any help. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Can I donate my airline miles, flight vouchers,
or hotel points?</strong></p>
<p>No, sorry. We would like to accept your miles, vouchers
and hotel points, and in the future we may be able to.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Can I donate hardware?</strong></p>
<p>Typically no, we don't encourage people to donate
hardware. But if you want to make a hardware donation that
you think might be especially useful for us, please mail
donations(at)torproject.org.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Can I donate my time?</strong></p>
<p>Yes. Here's a <a
href="<page getinvolved/volunteer>"
target="_blank">list of areas where we would love your
help</a>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>I would like my company to support Tor. What can
we do to help?</strong></p>
<p>Your company could match donations made by its employees
to the Tor Project--that would be wonderful. Your
company may operate a corporate foundation that
gives out grants, and if so, you should encourage it
to fund us. Maybe your company would be willing to <a
href="<page docs/faq>#HowDoIDecide"
target="_blank">operate a Tor relay</a>. If your company
sells cloud services, perhaps it could donate these to Tor:
We use them in some anti-censorship projects.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>You don't support my preferred way to donate. Can
I recommend a new donation method to you?</strong></p>
<p>Sure. Just mail us at donations(at)torproject.org.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Will the Tor Project accept donations from anybody,
or do you reserve the right to reject support from specific
organizations or individuals?</strong></p>
<p>We do reserve the right to reject a donation. To date
though, we haven't exercised that right. We are happy that
a broad range of people use and support Tor.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>I have more questions. How can I get
answers?</strong></p>
<p>Feel free to send questions to
donations(at)torproject.org. We will try to answer you,
and we'll also post your question (and the answer) here.</p>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
<div class="col-md-12 col-md-offset-0">
<a href="<page donate/donate>" class="btn btn-primary btn-md active" role="button">Back to donate page!</a>
</div>
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#include <donatefoot.wmi>