Riseup — Privacy Email & VPN for Activists Onion Link (2026)

What Is Riseup?

Riseup is a nonprofit collective that has provided privacy-focused communication infrastructure for activists and social justice organizations since 1999. It offers email, mailing lists, a VPN, chat and other services — all funded entirely by donations, with no advertising and no commercial interests of any kind.

Its stated mission is to support people and organizations working toward liberatory social change by providing secure, private communication tools. This focus distinguishes it from general-purpose privacy services — Riseup is not a privacy business, it is a political project that views privacy as a prerequisite for effective organizing and dissent.

Riseup does not log IP addresses, does not comply with requests it considers politically motivated and publishes a warrant canary — a regularly updated statement confirming it has not received secret government orders it cannot disclose. The combination of its nonprofit structure, its explicit political mission and its track record of resisting surveillance demands makes it one of the most trusted communication platforms available for activists.

Onion Address

Clearnet version: https://riseup.net

Verification: This address is published in Riseup’s official documentation and has been stable since launch.

Services Riseup Provides

How to Get a Riseup Account

Riseup accounts are not open to the general public — access requires either an invitation from an existing member or a direct application explaining your use case.

Method 1 — Invitation Code

Existing Riseup members can generate invite codes for new users. Each member receives a limited number of codes. If you know someone with a Riseup account, ask them for an invite code. Navigate to riseup.net, click Request Account and enter the invite code when prompted.

Method 2 — Direct Application

If you don’t know an existing member, you can apply directly through the website. Explain your use case — what kind of work you do and why you need privacy-focused communication infrastructure. Applications are reviewed by Riseup volunteers. Response times vary — sometimes days, sometimes weeks.

Who Riseup accepts: Activists, journalists, human rights workers, social justice organizations, privacy advocates and others with a genuine need for privacy-focused communication. Riseup is not a general-purpose email provider — applications that don’t indicate a relevant use case are typically declined.

Riseup Email — What Makes It Different

The Warrant Canary

Riseup publishes a warrant canary — a regularly updated statement confirming that it has not received any secret government orders, national security letters or gag orders that it is prohibited from disclosing. If Riseup ever receives such an order and cannot legally disclose it, the canary simply stops being updated — an absence that signals to users that something has changed.

The canary is signed with Riseup’s PGP key, making it verifiable. Check the canary at riseup.net/canary before relying on Riseup for sensitive communications — an outdated or missing canary is a meaningful warning signal.

Riseup’s canary has been consistently maintained since the practice began. As of March 2026, no canary failure has occurred.

Riseup VPN

Riseup’s VPN is free for all Riseup members and is among the most privacy-protective VPN options available. It operates under the same no-logging policy as Riseup’s email services and is funded by donations rather than user data or subscription fees.

It is available as a desktop application for Windows, Mac and Linux, and as a mobile app for Android. It uses the LEAP Encrypted Access Project protocol — an open-source VPN framework developed specifically for privacy-focused providers.

Riseup VPN vs. commercial VPNs: Commercial VPNs are businesses — their no-log claims are not always verifiable, their financial interests may conflict with user privacy and they operate under various national jurisdictions that may compel data disclosure. Riseup VPN is operated by a nonprofit collective with a documented political commitment to user privacy and a track record spanning 25 years. For users whose threat model includes VPN provider trust, Riseup’s nonprofit structure and mission provide a meaningfully different assurance than a commercial provider’s marketing claims.

Riseup’s History and Track Record

Riseup was founded in Seattle in 1999 by activists who needed secure communication infrastructure for organizing work. It predates most of the current privacy landscape by over a decade — Gmail launched in 2004, ProtonMail in 2013, Signal in 2014.

Over 25 years of operation, Riseup has developed a track record that few privacy services can match. It has resisted legal pressure, maintained its political mission through multiple changes in the broader political environment and continued to provide services without monetizing user data.

In 2016, Riseup received two sealed court orders related to user accounts. It complied with the orders but subsequently disclosed their existence, updated its warrant canary and changed its data retention practices to minimize what it could be compelled to hand over. This incident — while not ideal — demonstrated that Riseup responds to legal pressure transparently rather than quietly complying and hiding the fact from users.

Limitations

US jurisdiction. Riseup is based in the United States — a country with broad surveillance authorities and national security letter provisions that prohibit disclosure. This is a meaningful limitation compared to Switzerland-based providers like ProtonMail. Riseup mitigates this through its data minimization practices — it cannot hand over data it doesn’t have — but the jurisdictional risk is real.

Invite-only access. The invitation requirement makes Riseup inaccessible to most people who need it urgently. If you are in a situation requiring immediate privacy-focused email, ProtonMail via its .onion address is a more accessible starting point. Pursue Riseup access for ongoing use once the immediate need is addressed.

Storage limits. Riseup email accounts have relatively modest storage limits compared to commercial providers. For most activist use cases this is sufficient — but users who need to store large volumes of email history may find the limits constraining.

No end-to-end encryption by default. Unlike ProtonMail, Riseup does not implement end-to-end encryption for email by default. Riseup can technically read your emails — it chooses not to, and its no-logging policy and political mission provide assurance — but this is architecturally different from ProtonMail’s approach where the provider cannot read content even if it wanted to. For maximum content security, use PGP encryption for sensitive messages sent via Riseup.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Riseup only for leftist or progressive activists?

Riseup’s stated mission focuses on “liberatory social change” and its founders and operators come from progressive activist backgrounds. In practice, it serves a broad range of people who need privacy-focused communication — journalists, human rights workers, lawyers, privacy advocates and others regardless of political orientation. The invite requirement means access is mediated through existing community networks, which in practice skews toward users connected to progressive organizing circles. Riseup does not explicitly restrict access based on political views.

What happened with Riseup and the 2016 court orders?

In 2016, Riseup received two sealed court orders — a type of legal demand that comes with a gag order prohibiting disclosure. The orders related to accounts allegedly involved in criminal activity unrelated to political organizing. Riseup complied with the orders — it had no legal basis to refuse — but subsequently disclosed their existence once permitted to do so, updated its warrant canary and implemented technical changes to minimize data retention. It has been transparent about the incident in its public documentation.

Can I use Riseup anonymously?

Accessing Riseup via its .onion address hides your IP from Riseup’s servers. Riseup does not log IPs regardless, but using the .onion address adds an additional technical layer. Account creation itself requires an invitation or application — both of which involve some human review — but Riseup does not require government ID or payment information. For most users, a Riseup account accessed via its .onion address provides strong practical anonymity.

Is Riseup’s VPN free?

Yes — Riseup VPN is free for all Riseup account holders. It is funded by donations. Riseup periodically asks members to contribute financially if they are able, but access is not contingent on payment.

How does Riseup compare to Signal for activist communication?

They serve different use cases. Signal is a messaging app — excellent for real-time encrypted communication between known contacts. Riseup provides email infrastructure — better for organizational communication, mailing lists and situations where asynchronous communication is needed. Signal requires a phone number; Riseup does not. For activists who need both, using Signal for real-time messaging and Riseup for email provides complementary coverage of different communication needs.