Some truths cannot be left unspoken. The sources who entrust them to us stay protected.
Independent journalism can only exist where those who report are free to do so without exposing their sources to consequences or reprisals.
At every stage of our work — from our digital infrastructure to the newsroom's email and the tools our contributors use — we apply the highest standards of protection available today. Information that could identify a source is never passed to any authority.
Protecting a source isn't a technical detail. It's the condition of our work.
It's an essential safeguard for investigative reporting, for the right to report and for press freedom. That's why we protect those who write to us with the same care we give to the stories themselves.
Published from Estonia, one of the freest countries in the world for the press.
Silere non possum is published by Clarionfold Press OÜ, a company incorporated under Estonian law. The publication's registered, editorial and operational base is in Estonia: a setting that provides a clear legal framework and strengthens the independence of our journalism.
Behind only Norway and the Netherlands; ahead of Denmark, Sweden and Finland.
Freedom of expression protected at constitutional level; attacks on journalists are rare.
Political and judicial power does not systematically go after the press.
A dedicated server, under our sole responsibility.
We don't rely on shared hosting or sit on third-party platforms. The paper runs on a dedicated, independent server — a choice made partly out of necessity, after attempts by Vatican bodies and connected parties to interfere with press freedom and editorial independence.
No shared tenancy
The environment isn't shared with other sites or users: this closes off one of the most common avenues of attack, the one that exploits a vulnerable ‘neighbour’ on the same machine.
Direct control
Updates, system hardening, encryption, security configuration and backups are handled to editorial standards, not the generic ones of a shared provider.
No middleman to lean on
We don't depend on a host run by third parties, who can be pressured into handing over data or taking down published content.
Data in safe keeping
Information stays under the control and jurisdiction the publication has chosen, rather than scattered across platforms whose rules and access points are unknown.
Write to us at encrypted mailboxes.
Messages between users of the same service are end-to-end encrypted; the archives are protected by ‘at rest’ encryption, with keys held by the user alone. Not even the provider can read what's in the mailboxes.
The keys remain with the user alone.
Based outside the main surveillance alliances, with some of the strictest privacy laws around.
By default. Encrypted content can't be handed over, even to the authorities.
An email's subject line isn't end-to-end encrypted. Never put sensitive information in the subject.
Four steps to protect you and your message.
Follow this sequence: each step adds another barrier between what you send us and anyone who might want to intercept it.
Use encrypted email
For sensitive communications, write to us from an encrypted email service. Two free, reliable options:
Founded in 2014 by CERN scientists. End-to-end encryption between you and Silere non possum, plus ‘zero-access’ encryption at rest.
Go to Proton Mail →End-to-end encrypts the subject line, attachments, contacts and calendar too. Lets you sign up anonymously, with no phone number.
Worth noting: Germany is part of the 14 Eyes — though encrypted content stays unreadable to third parties regardless.
Go to Tuta →Protect the message with a password
Both Proton Mail and Tuta let you send an encrypted message even to someone who doesn't use the same service, protected by a password you choose.
Compose the email and turn on the password-protected message option (Proton: the padlock icon; Tuta: ‘confidential’).
Set a strong password and, where offered, a hint that doesn't give the password away.
Send. The recipient gets a link and, with the password, reads and replies in an encrypted space that the provider and any intermediaries can't reach.
Send us the password on a separate channel
The benchmark for end-to-end encryption: open source, run by a non-profit foundation, with minimal metadata. Recommended by the Freedom of the Press Foundation. Supports usernames so you needn't reveal your number.
Content is end-to-end encrypted (the same protocol as Signal), but it's owned by Meta: extensive metadata and US jurisdiction. Less private than Signal.
Ordinary chats are not end-to-end encrypted: only ‘secret chats’ are. For a password, use a secret chat, or better still use Signal.
A different address from the one you sent the message from. A simple, acceptable option if the other channels aren't available.
Set an expiry
Where you can, set the message to delete itself after a while: Proton Mail lets you set an expiry even for external recipients, and Signal offers disappearing messages. If you use Telegram, start a secret chat. Leaving fewer traces after a message is read limits the risk if a device is ever accessed.
Whichever channel you choose, the name of anyone who writes to us stays confidential.
We don't reveal, resell or share our sources. It's the first pact the newsroom's work rests on.