Digital Security Helpline

What is the Digital Security Helpline?

Available translations:
Access Now’s Digital Security Helpline works with individuals and organizations around the world to keep them safe online. If you’re at risk, we can help you improve your digital security practices to keep out of harm’s way. If you’re already under attack, we provide rapid-response emergency assistance.

Contact Us

Our 24/7 services are available with support in nine languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, Tagalog, Arabic, and Italian. We respond to all requests within two hours.

How Can We Help You?

We are a free-of-charge resource for civil society around the world. We offer real-time, direct technical assistance and advice to civil society groups & activists, media organizations, journalists & bloggers, and human rights defenders.

The Helpline will walk you or your organization through assessing the risks you face in your work, and together we’ll prioritize your digital security needs. We’ll help you resolve existing problems, teach you some of the most important best practices, and help you get into a secure mindset for the future.

Our Services

Digital Security Helpline
  • Rapid response for digital security incidents
  • Personalized recommendations, instruction, and follow-up support for digital security issues
  • Help assessing risks and creating organizational or community security strategies
  • Guidance and educational materials on security practices and tools for organizations, communities, groups, and individuals
  • Support for securing technical infrastructure, websites, and social media against attacks
  • Referrals, capacity-building, in-person consultations, and training

Digital Security Clinic

Access Now’s Digital Security Clinic brings the Helpline to you.

Our technologists run clinics at conferences and events around the world, where attendees can raise questions and get immediate help.

How to Contact Us?

help@accessnow.org

PGP public key
Fingerprint: 6CE6 221C 98EC F399 A04C 41B8 C46B ED33 32E8 A2BC

We commit to using the best practices in the field when we collect, store, and use sensitive information. For more information about how we protect your personal data, and our Helpline Terms of Service, please read our Data Usage Policy.

Where is the Helpline?

Tiles Grid

Community & Resources

Access Now’s Digital Security Helpline is a member of the Civil Society Computer Emergency Response Team (CiviCERT), an accredited CERT focused on improving the incident response capabilities of civil society groups and individuals around the world.

CiviCERT is an initiative of Rapid Response Network (RARENET), a network of non-governmental organizations, internet content and service providers, and individuals who contribute their time and resources to globally improve the security awareness of civil society groups.

As part of Access Now’s work and in collaboration with the broader community, we create and contribute to guides and materials to help communities, organizations, and individuals improve their digital security. These guides target a spectrum of users, from non-technical users to website administrators. Please find some guides below:

  • Digital First Aid Kit

    Helping you in emergency situations, such as when your social media account gets hacked, your website is compromised, or your computer is infected

     

  • Helpline PGP Email Encryption Guides (Windows | Mac)

    Helping you set up encrypted email

     

  • Helpline Safer Travel Guide

    Helping you prepare for travels to high-risk countries

     

  • Helpline Self-Doxing Guide

    Tips and resources for exploring open source intelligence on oneself to prevent online doxing

     

  • Helpline Community Documentation

    The procedures and documentation we create to aid our work on the helpline

     


  • Partner organizations have produced a number of guides and resources that we find valuable in our work, and you may too. They include:

     

  • Security in a Box

    From Frontline Defenders and the Tactical Technology Collective

     

  • Surveillance Self-Defense

    From the Electronic Frontier Foundation

     

  • Umbrella

    From Security First