[[!meta title="Tails report from August to December 2014"]]
[[!meta date="Wed Mar 4 14:17:29 2015"]]

As you might have noticed, [[the last monthly
report|news/report_2014_06-07]] was a long time ago, because the people
who were doing them had really no time left. Somebody new finally takes
over, let's hope it lasts :)

So, here is a minimal report for the second half of 2014, the next ones
will be more complete.

Releases
========

* [[Tails 1.1.1 was released on September 2, 2014.|news/version_1.1.1]] (minor release)
* [[Tails 1.2 was released on October 14, 2014.|news/version_1.2]] (major release)
* [[Tails 1.2.1 was released on December 3, 2014.|news/version_1.2.1]] (minor release)
* [[Tails 1.2.2 was released on December 15, 2014.|news/version_1.2.2]] (special minor release for security reasons)

Code
====

For details, see each release announcement. Notable changes include:

* 1.1.1: [[I2P|doc/anonymous_internet/i2p]] now needs to be enabled with
  a boot option. We made this choice after [[a security hole affected
  I2P|security/Security_hole_in_I2P_0.9.13]] ; this problem is now
  fixed, but if any other is discovered in the future, it won't affect
  Tails users who don't use I2P.

* 1.2: [[Tor Browser|doc/anonymous_internet/Tor_Browser]] replaces the
  previous Firefox + Torbutton setup. This allows us to work more
  closely with Tor people and provide a more unified experience to the
  user.

* Several major applications are [[confined with
  AppArmor|contribute/design/application_isolation]]. This improves the
  overall security provided by Tails, and AppArmor work is going on to
  confine more applications :)

* 1.2.1: finally remove
  [[TrueCrypt|doc/encryption_and_privacy/truecrypt]]. It was abandonned
  upstream since a long time, and it's safer to use maintained, reviewed
  encryption methods, like
  [[LUKS|doc/encryption_and_privacy/encrypted_volumes]] (that's what the
  [[persistence|doc/first_steps/persistence]] uses). You can still open
  your TrueCrypt volumes, but we recommand you switch to LUKS volumes as
  soon as possible.

Funding
=======

- We passed a [[call for donations|news/who_are_you_helping]] on our
  website which was quite successful. Donations are still welcome though :)

- The grant proposal that we submitted to the [Digital
  Defenders](https://digitaldefenders.org/) was approved. It will fund
  part of our activity over 2015:

  - Build our capacity to provide same-day security updates:
    - Increase the test coverage of our automated test suite to cover
      most of our remaining manual tests.
    - Write automated tests for the new features to be developed during
      2015.
    - Buy dedicated hardware to allow core developers to be able to run
      the test suite locally.
  - Streamline the installation process for less tech-savvy people:
    - Have Tails Installer available in Debian, Ubuntu, and derivatives.
    - Write a Firefox extension to automate the ISO verification at
      download time.
    - Rework our download and installation instructions as a web
      assistant to guide new users step-by-step through the process.
  - Provide one year of help desk.

- We submitted a full proposal to the [Open Technology
  Fund](https://www.opentechfund.org/). It passed a first round of
  review and is now waiting for the approval of their final committee.

Outreach
========

- Several Tails contributors attended the
  [31C3](https://events.ccc.de/category/31c3/) in Hamburg. We held a
  Tails table where many people came to ask questions, get Tails
  installed, start to contribute or just say thank you. We even had some
  origami folding moments :)

- We passed a call for help on [[porting Windows camouflage to GNOME
  3.14|news/windows_camouflage_jessie]].

Press & Testimonials
====================

For more information concerning the second half of 2014, see [[our press page|press]].

* 2014-12-29: In [Reconstructive narratives](http://media.ccc.de/browse/congress/2014/31c3_-_6258_-_en_-_saal_1_-_201412282030_-_reconstructing_narratives_-_jacob_-_laura_poitras.html#video)
  at the 31th Chaos Communication Congress, Jacob Appelbaum and Laura
  Poitras explained that properly implemented encryption technologies
  such as Tor, Tails, GnuPG, OTR, and RedPhone are some of the only ones
  that can blind the pervasive surveillance of the NSA. They are rated
  as "catastrophic" by the NSA itself.

* Tails is being used in the film
  [Citizenfour](https://citizenfourfilm.com/) by Laura Poitras and
  appears in the credits.

Documentation
=============

- We documented a workaround to [[empty the
  trash|doc/encryption_and_privacy/secure_deletion#empty_trash]] of the persistent volume.

Metrics
=======

In August 2014:

* Tails has been started more than 287,156 times in August. This makes 9,263 boots a day on average.
* 19,910 downloads of the OpenPGP signature of Tails ISO from our website.
* 110 bug reports were received through WhisperBack.

In September 2014:

* Tails has been started more than 344,639 times in September. This makes 11,488 boots a day on average.
* 26,311 downloads of the OpenPGP signature of Tails ISO from our website.
* 102 bug reports were received through WhisperBack.

In October 2014:

* Tails has been started more than 364,727 times in October. This makes 11,765 boots a day on average.
* 27,342 downloads of the OpenPGP signature of Tails ISO from our website.
* 160 bug reports were received through WhisperBack.

In November 2014:

* Tails has been started more than 337,962 times in November. This makes 11,265 boots a day on average.
* 21,301 downloads of the OpenPGP signature of Tails ISO from our website.
* 74 bug reports were received through WhisperBack.

In December 2014:

* Tails has been started more than 347,669 times in December. This makes 11,215 boots a day on average.
* 26,549 downloads of the OpenPGP signature of Tails ISO from our website.
* 91 bug reports were received through WhisperBack.
