Safety
The biggest threat to trans people online in much of the world isn’t government surveillance. It’s platforms getting sold to owners who don’t care about us, data being monetized, harassment campaigns, and incompetent moderation.
That’s what we’re built to protect against.
TransHarbor also works just as well in parts of the world where trans and nonbinary folks do need to be concerned about the information their government is able to obtain. We use government-grade security to protect trans folks from backwards governments. We think there’s something poetic about that.
The Platform Can’t Be Sold
TransHarbor uses a dual-entity structure:
- Swiss Association holds the IP and governs the mission
- Wyoming Unincorporated Nonprofit Association operates the platform
- Neither can be sold, acquired, or have its mission changed
This is legally binding. There’s no CEO who can sell out. No investors demanding an exit. The platform you use today will have the same mission in ten years.
Bank-Grade Security Infrastructure
We run on Elastisys Welkin, a Compliant Kubernetes platform that implements ISO 27001 security standards. This means documented security policies, regular audits, incident response protocols, access controls, and continuous compliance verification.
We’re implementing the same security framework that protects your bank account.
Hardware Security for Encryption
We use YubiHSM hardware security modules to protect encryption keys. These tamper-resistant physical devices store keys in hardware, require physical presence to use, and protect against remote attacks.
Your data is encrypted at rest. Keys are in hardware. Even if someone hacks our servers, they get encrypted data they can’t decrypt.
Trans-Informed Moderation
Our AI moderator, Deirdre (named after economist Deirdre McCloskey), understands trans-specific context: reclaiming slurs vs. harassment, venting vs. self-harm, discussing transition vs. giving medical advice.
Deirdre handles front-line moderation with human oversight. Every decision can be appealed. The humans reviewing are from the trans community.
No Data Monetization
We’re not a business. We don’t have investors. We don’t sell your data to advertisers, share it with data brokers, train AI on your messages, build advertising profiles, or track you across the web.
Our legal structure prohibits it.
Community Governance
Major decisions require member vote. Mission changes need supermajority approval.
If we screw up, you can vote for some other way of doing things or vote the Association out entirely.
Open Source
Every line of TransHarbor is open source. Verify our encryption claims. Check how moderation works. Review what data we collect. Audit any feature we add.
US Hosting Means US Law
We’re subject to US law. US law enforcement with valid warrants can compel us to provide data. We’ll fight overbroad requests, but valid legal process is valid legal process.
Encryption and hardware security protect against unauthorized access, data breaches, and rogue actors. They won’t stop a court order.
Don’t like it? Neither do we. Please donate a server in Switzerland where privacy laws are a bit better. As it stands, we’re hosted in the US because that’s what we have.
What We Can’t Do
We can’t protect you from valid warrants. We can’t stop determined doxxers - be careful what you share. We can’t guarantee perfect uptime - we’re volunteer-run. We can’t catch everything instantly. We can’t prevent all harassment, but we respond seriously when you report it.
Questions
Why US hosting? Cost-effective for a volunteer nonprofit. Real protection comes from mission lock, encryption, and governance - not server geography. We’re open to Swiss servers if you have one to donate long term.
Can I use TransHarbor for illegal activity? No. We’re subject to US law.
What if I’m being harassed? Report it immediately. Our moderation team understands trans-specific harassment.
How do I know you won’t change? Our legal structure makes mission changes impossible without supermajority community vote.
What if law enforcement requests my data? We’ll comply with valid warrants. We’ll fight overbroad requests.
Why should I trust you? Don’t. We’re open source, mission-locked, and transparent about limitations. Verify everything.
Bottom Line
Safety is structure that prevents enshittification, security practices that protect data, moderation that understands trans issues, governance that gives community power, and transparency that enables verification.
We’re building infrastructure that can’t be sold out, monetized, or abandoned.
Contact
General inquiries: support@transharbor.org
We’re trying really, really frickin’ hard to make sure this platform is safe for users now and in the future