Introducing Haven, the open source security system in your pocket
Trevor Timm
December 22, 2017
Today we’re proud to announce the release a new Android app called Haven, an open source security system for journalists and human rights defenders.
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Haven is a "personal security system" that empowers individuals to use a cheap second phone running free, open-source software to monitor their possessions and physical spaces when they are away from them. Haven is a joint project between Guardian Project and Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF).
Imagine you are a journalist working in a hostile foreign country and you are worried about security services breaking into your hotel room and rifling through your belongings and computer while you are away. Haven detects changes in the environment using the sensors in a typical smartphone—the camera, microphone, gyroscope, accelerometer, ambient light, USB power—to alert you if anyone enters your space or attempts to tamper with your devices while you aren’t there.
The Haven app can then send end-to-end encrypted alerts to your phone via Signal, and you can monitor activity remotely through a Tor Onion Service. Importantly, Haven does not rely on the cloud and does not transmit data that third parties can access unless you have SMS functionality turned on in situations where you don’t have data or wifi.
Freedom of the Press Foundation board president Edward Snowden, who has been leading the project on the FPF side, explains exactly how Haven works in the video above. You can also read more about the project in Snowden's interview with Wired's Andy Greenberg.
Haven is also 100% free and open source software. Right now, it’s still in beta, so we would love your help in making it better. We are looking for testers, developers, designers, and partners, to build the community that can make Haven all it can be.
Please visit Haven’s Github page for more information for how you can contribute. Freedom of the Press Foundation has set up a donate page to support Guardian Project’s further development of the project as well. Guardian Project's developers have created this app on a shoestring budget and all proceeds will go to furthering their amazing work.