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What Is Tails OS? The Amnesic Operating System Explained (and When to Use It)
Published 25 October 2026
Short answer: Tails is a free operating system that you start from a USB stick instead of your computer's normal Windows, macOS or Linux. It sends everything you do online through the Tor network, and it forgets everything when you shut it down. It's built for people who need to leave no trace on the computer they use and hide their location from the sites they visit: journalists and their sources, activists, people researching something sensitive. It isn't magic, and it's easy to undo its protection by how you use it.
How Tails works
The name comes from The Amnesic Incognito Live System, and the design rests on three ideas.
It's a live system
You shut the computer down, plug in your Tails USB stick and start from it. Tails runs entirely in the computer's memory and never uses the internal hard drive. When you shut down, you can start your normal operating system again as if nothing happened. Because Tails doesn't touch the hard drive, malware on your everyday Windows or macOS installation can't follow you into it.
It's amnesic
Tails starts from the same clean state every time. Without it, a normal computer quietly keeps a record of you: websites you visited (even in private mode), files you opened (even after you delete them), Wi-Fi networks you joined. Tails writes none of that to disk, and the memory is wiped when you shut down.
Everything goes through Tor
Every connection from Tails goes through the Tor network, which passes your traffic through three relays run by different people and organisations around the world. The first relay knows where you're coming from but not where you're going; the last knows where you're going but not who you are. Applications that try to connect to the internet without Tor are blocked automatically.
Tails comes with the tools to work this way already set up: Tor Browser with an ad blocker, Thunderbird for email, a password manager, LibreOffice, OnionShare for sharing files over Tor, and a tool that strips metadata from files.
Persistent Storage: the optional exception
Starting from scratch every time is safe but inconvenient. Tails lets you create an encrypted Persistent Storage area on the same USB stick, and you choose what goes in it. Options include a folder for your documents, Wi-Fi passwords, Tor bridges, browser bookmarks, Thunderbird email, encryption keys, and additional software you've installed. Everything not in Persistent Storage stays amnesic.
Who makes Tails
Tails dates back to 2009 and is built on Debian Linux. In September 2024 the Tails project merged its operations into the Tor Project, the nonprofit behind the Tor network and Tor Browser. The two had worked together since 2015, and Tails said it had outgrown its own small structure. Tails is free, its source code is public, and it's funded by donations and organisations such as Mozilla and DuckDuckGo.
The current version is Tails 7.15.1, released on 23 October 2026 as an emergency update that blocks certificates from a compromised certificate authority. That's typical: Tails releases often, and staying current matters.
Will it run on your computer?
According to the official system requirements:
- Processor: a 64-bit x86-64 (Intel or AMD) processor. Tails works on most computers less than 10 years old.
- Memory: 3 GB of RAM to run smoothly.
- USB stick: 8 GB or larger. The download is about 1.8 GB and installation takes around half an hour.
It doesn't run on:
- Apple Silicon Macs (M1, M2 and later). As of October 2026, Tails supports only Intel-based Macs, and even some of those need their startup security settings changed to boot from USB.
- Phones and tablets, Raspberry Pi, or any other ARM-based device.
How to install Tails safely
The installation is only as trustworthy as the computer you do it from and the file you download.
- Download only from tails.net. The site has separate instructions for Windows, macOS and Linux.
- Verify the download. On the download page, use the "Select your download to verify" button, which checks the file in your browser. You can also compare the checksum by hand, or use the OpenPGP signature if you already know how; Tails no longer publishes OpenPGP instructions. If verification fails, download again, ideally from a different network or computer.
- Install from a computer you trust. Tails warns that installing from an infected computer can corrupt your Tails stick. On Windows the recommended tools are Rufus or balenaEtcher; on Linux, GNOME Disks. You can also clone Tails from a friend's trusted Tails stick.
- Use the stick only for Tails. Don't plug it in while another operating system is running, and don't use it to move files between systems.
- Keep it updated. Tails offers automatic upgrades, which keep your Persistent Storage. A fresh install on the same stick wipes it.
What Tails protects you from
- Traces on the computer. Nothing from your session is left on the hard drive. That's useful on a shared or borrowed computer, or one that might be seized later.
- Malware on the computer's normal operating system, because Tails runs independently of it.
- Your internet provider or local network seeing what you do. They can see you're using Tor, but not which sites you visit. Tor bridges can hide that you're using Tor at all.
- Websites learning who and where you are, unless you tell them. Trackers can't follow you from site to site.
What it doesn't protect you from
The Tails project is unusually upfront about this. Its own warnings page is titled "Tails is safe but not magic!"
- Hardware keyloggers and tampered hardware. A keylogger physically installed in a computer records everything you type, Tails or not. They're easy to hide in desktop computers, and more likely on public computers in libraries or internet cafés.
- Compromised BIOS or firmware. No operating system can protect you if the computer's firmware or hardware has been altered.
- Tor exit nodes. The last relay connects to the website on your behalf. If the site doesn't use HTTPS, that relay can read your traffic, and a malicious one can try to impersonate the site. Take browser security warnings seriously.
- Correlation attacks. An adversary who can watch both your connection into Tor and the traffic coming out could, in principle, match them up by timing. Tails says it doesn't know of this being used against Tor users in practice, but no network fast enough for browsing can rule it out.
- Logging into your own accounts. If you sign in to your personal Gmail or social media from Tails, that session is yours, whatever Tor hides. Tails also warns that signing in to several accounts in one session can let a website link them. Restart Tails between different activities.
- Metadata in your files. Photos and documents can carry location, device and author details. Clean them before sharing.
Tails also can't help with a phone. If you're worried about remote spyware on your mobile, that's a different problem, which we cover in What is Pegasus spyware?
Tails vs Whonix vs Qubes vs a VPN
| Tails | Whonix | Qubes OS | VPN | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Live operating system on a USB stick | Two virtual machines: one runs Tor, the other your apps | Desktop operating system that splits everything into isolated virtual machines | A service that relays your traffic through one provider |
| Forgets everything at shutdown | Yes, by design | Optional | Disposable VMs only | No |
| Routes traffic through Tor | Everything | Everything in the Whonix machines | When used with Whonix | No |
| Best for | Sensitive sessions on any computer, leaving no trace | Long-term anonymous work on your own computer | Keeping one compromised app from reaching the rest | Hiding your traffic from your ISP or public Wi-Fi |
| Effort | Low | Medium | High; Linux experience helps | Very low |
The main design difference between Tails and Whonix is that Whonix keeps Tor in a separate virtual machine. Whonix's documentation argues that this hides your real IP address even if the machine running your apps is fully compromised, which a single-system design like Tails can't guarantee. Qubes can also run Whonix inside it.
A VPN is a different kind of tool. It moves trust from your internet provider to the VPN company, which can see both who you are and where you go. Tails' documentation notes that a VPN is weaker than Tor against correlation attacks because it doesn't use three independent relays. A VPN is still useful for everyday privacy; see our guide to the best VPN for privacy in Australia.
Is Tails legal in Australia?
We're not aware of any Australian law that bans using Tails or Tor, and Australian legal commentary generally makes the same point: the software is legal, and what you do with it is subject to the same laws as anything else. Australian police also have specific powers aimed at crime on anonymous networks. The Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Act 2021 gave the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission warrants to disrupt data, gather intelligence on criminal networks online and take over accounts. The government has cited the dark web as one reason for them. This is general information, not legal advice.
What about your phone?
Tails is for computers only; it doesn't run on phones. The closest options on a phone:
- Tor Browser for Android, from the Tor Project, available on Google Play or through the Guardian Project's repository in F-Droid.
- Orbot, a free app from the Guardian Project that can send other apps' traffic through Tor.
- On iPhone there's no Tor Browser. The Tor Project points to Onion Browser instead, noting that Apple's rules mean it lacks some of Tor Browser's protections.
None of these make a phone amnesic, and they don't fix the bigger mobile risks: apps, trackers and exploits. That's where the phone's operating system matters. Our phone privacy checklist covers the settings, and if you want a phone built for security from the start, GrapheneOS is the closest mobile counterpart to the thinking behind Tails.
Should you use Tails?
Use Tails if you need to work on something sensitive without leaving traces, especially on a computer you don't control, or if your safety depends on a website or network not learning who you are. For everyday browsing it's more friction than most people need: a good browser, a privacy-respecting VPN and a well-set-up phone go a long way. When you do use it, verify the download, keep it updated, and keep your Tails identity separate from your real one.
Privacy First sells GrapheneOS phones. We have no affiliation with the Tails project or the Tor Project.
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