One Hand Builds a Censorship Bypass Tool. The Other Just Defunded the People Who Make Them.

The US State Department launched freedom.gov in February 2026. It's a website with a built-in VPN. Europeans can use it to bypass their governments' content restrictions.

The same month, the State Department gutted the program that funded anti-censorship tools for activists in Iran, China, and Russia.

One hand builds a censorship bypass tool. The other defunds the people who make censorship bypass tools.

What Just Got Cut

For nearly two decades, the State Department ran a program called Internet Freedom. It quietly funded small groups worldwide who built technologies to evade government censorship.

These weren't hypothetical tools. They helped Iranians coordinate during anti-government protests. They let Myanmar activists bypass the junta's "digital iron curtain." They allowed users in China to avoid surveillance.

The program funded Tor (anonymous browsing), Signal (encrypted messaging), VPN tools, and advanced circumvention tech that works even when entire mobile networks are cut.

It distributed over $500 million in the past decade. $94 million in 2024 alone.

In 2025, it issued zero dollars.

"The programme was effectively gutted," said a former US official who worked on it. "They didn't issue any grants this year."

Who's Paying the Price

The Open Technology Fund (OTF) — a nonprofit that directed roughly half the money — sued to get funding restored. They won in December 2025. The Trump administration is appealing.

Meanwhile, the groups that built these tools are running out of money.

"It's not sustainable," said a digital rights expert based in Europe who worked on multiple Internet Freedom projects.

Some groups laid off staff. Others are working without pay.

"Everybody's just waiting right now, to be honest. But at the same time, wait at your own risk," said an Iranian technologist funded through the program.

The activists who relied on this funding are now exposed. In countries like Iran, China, and Russia, being identified as someone who builds censorship-bypass tools means prison. Sometimes worse.

The Contradiction

The same government that cut this funding launched freedom.gov.

It's a State Department portal. Europeans can use it to access content their governments restrict. Built-in VPN. Counter EU content moderation laws.

So: defund anti-censorship tools for activists in authoritarian countries. Build a government-run censorship bypass tool for Europeans.

The activists in Iran, China, and Russia aren't bypassing censorship to watch banned TikToks. They're using these tools to coordinate protests, document massacres, and access news when their governments cut the internet entirely.

But the funding's gone.

What Happens Next

Censorship tech is getting cheaper. Chinese companies exported sophisticated internet-monitoring devices to Africa and Asia last year. These let governments fine-tune control — allow commerce, throttle communication.

At the same time, demand for circumvention tools is surging. More journalists, activists, and civil society groups need them than ever before.

The groups that built these tools are hoping Europe will fund them now. Some have already petitioned EU officials.

But for now, they're in limbo.

The cuts "make it easier to build a 'digital iron curtain,'" said one recipient of the US funding. "It makes it easier for the Kremlin to put Russians in a digital information bubble that reinforces specific narratives about people outside of Russia. This makes it easier for China to do this. For Iran to do this."

A State Department spokesperson said the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor "continues to coordinate with other offices to support the development of anti-censorship technology."

But the funding's not there. And the activists who needed it are waiting.

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FAQs

Did freedom.gov replace the Internet Freedom program?

No. Freedom.gov is a government-run portal for Europeans. The Internet Freedom program funded independent groups worldwide who built anti-censorship tools for activists in authoritarian countries. Completely different missions.

Can activists still access these tools?

For now, yes — many tools like Tor and Signal are open-source and will continue. But without funding, they won't be maintained, updated, or adapted to new censorship techniques. The groups that built them are running out of money.

Why did the funding get cut?

DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) targeted it as part of broader reductions. Career employees who staffed Internet Freedom resigned or were fired in 2025. Most programs were cut permanently.