Channel for Whistleblowers

With the recent reports in the Guardian and the Washington Post that the National Security Agency of the U.S. has been monitoring foreign e-mail and private social media channels, not only has the revelation been in the top of the news nearly everywhere but the topic of whistleblowing has been on everyone’s lips.

For Swedish daily Dagens Nyheter (DN), making sure that readers can send in tips in a secure way is nothing new. “Tips from readers are one of the most important raw sources for a newspaper and have often been crucial in getting investigations underway,” says Mattias Carlsson, one of the reporters at Dagens Nyheter  responsible for the paper’s DN Granskar initiative, which was started last fall as a new channel to accept news tips from people with sensitive information who want to remain anonymous.

“DN Granskar gives readers the opportunity to leave information to the paper without needing to send a mail or reveal who they are, which increases security,” says Carlsson. “The security has been tested many times and all information is encrypted, plus only a restricted number of people from the paper have access to the tips.”

It’s a classic way of doing reporting – the tips can result in a new investigative series or help fill in part of the bigger picture of an existing piece – but with a modern twist for the digital age, where security is a lot more complicated.

“The battle for the best news tips is just as important as the battle for readers,” says Carlsson. “Dagens Nyheter’s extremely good credibility means that we can compete successfully for the best information against top investigative shows like Uppdrag Granskning from Swedish Television and Radioleaks. And we have an obligation to provide our whistleblowers with legal protection, and that means having as secure a system as possible.”