Cypherpunk School teaches you to protect your privacy through code, not policy.
We’re building hands-on courses that transform privacy-curious individuals into crypto-capable practitioners. No fluff. No GUI tutorials. Just terminal, tools, and real skills.
Current Course: Cypherpunk 101 — 12 weeks of command-line cryptography, OpSec, and applied privacy (Week 1 live now)
“Privacy is necessary for an open society in the electronic age.”— Eric Hughes, A Cypherpunk’s Manifesto (1993)
We build this school on five principles:
We don’t just read about privacy. We implement it.
Every lesson includes hands-on CLI exercises. You’ll build real systems, use real tools, develop real skills. By the end of Cypherpunk 101, you’ll have your own personal privacy infrastructure—not just theoretical knowledge.
Course Structure
Cypherpunk 101 — 12 Weeks
For: Linux users comfortable with CLI
- Weeks 1–3: Foundations (philosophy, crypto, GPG)
- Weeks 4–5: Secure Everything (comms, filesystem)
- Weeks 6–8: Network Like a Ghost (Tor, SSH, identity)
- Weeks 9–10: Automate & Integrate
- Weeks 11–12: Advanced Concepts
Privacy 101 — 12 Weeks
For: Complete beginners — no technical prerequisites
- Weeks 1–3: Foundations (threat modeling, Linux, browser)
- Weeks 4–6: Your Privacy Stack (passwords, email, messaging)
- Weeks 7–8: Network Privacy (VPNs, encrypted storage)
- Weeks 9–10: Advanced Topics (Tor, full workflow)
Advanced Modules
For: Cypherpunk 101 graduates
- Post-quantum cryptography (Kyber, Dilithium)
- Zero-knowledge proofs (zkSNARKs, Circom)
- Self-sovereign identity systems
- Metadata-resistant messaging (Nym)
- Hardware security modules
- Privacy-preserving smart contracts
Why We Teach This Way
“GUIs hide what’s happening. CLIs teach what’s real.”
When you encrypt a file via GUI, you click a button. On the CLI, you understand which algorithm is used, where keys are stored, what metadata remains, how to script it, and when it fails and why.
“You can’t trust what you can’t audit.”
Every tool we teach is open source. You (or the security community) can read the code, verify claims, and trust through transparency—not marketing. Closed-source “trust us” encryption is worthless.
“Privacy skills shouldn’t be paywalled.”
Core courses are free forever. We may offer advanced courses, guided cohorts, or mentorship later—but foundational privacy skills stay accessible to everyone. Privacy is a right. Education to protect it should be too.
What You’ll Build
By completing Cypherpunk 101, you’ll have:
- Personal threat model and security strategy
- GPG keypair and encrypted communication setup
- Encrypted filesystems for sensitive data
- Secure SSH infrastructure
- Tor and anonymous networking skills
- Compartmentalized digital identities
- Automated encrypted backup systems
- Practical cypherpunk toolkit
Not just knowledge. Real infrastructure you can use today.
Who This Is For
You MUST have
- Linux installed and working (any distro)
- Basic bash/CLI comfort (terminal navigation, file editing)
- Package manager familiarity (apt, pacman, dnf, etc.)
- Willingness to experiment (ideally in a VM)
New to Linux? Start with Privacy 101—it covers Linux basics before diving into command-line crypto.
You DON’T need
- Prior cryptography knowledge (we teach this)
- Programming skills (helpful but not required)
- Sysadmin expertise (we learn together)
How to Use This Course
For Linux Users New to Cryptography
- 01. Verify you meet prerequisites
- 02. Start Week 1—build your threat model
- 03. Follow lessons sequentially (foundations matter)
- 04. Complete hands-on exercises before advancing
- 05. Use a dedicated VM for practice (break things safely)
- 06. Keep notes as suggested in Week 1
For Experienced Users
- Skim familiar material, focus on new tools
- Jump to specific topics of interest
- Use as reference documentation
- Share knowledge while protecting privacy (consider pseudonyms)
Time Commitment
- 4–6 hours per week for core lessons
- Self-paced—go faster or slower as needed
- Lifetime access—return anytime for reference
We deliver value now, not perfection later.
Instead of waiting months to release everything at once, we launch one week at a time:
- You start learning immediately—Week 1 is live today
- Content is battle-tested—each week refined through personal walkthrough
- Real feedback shapes the course—your input improves remaining weeks
- Quality stays high—each release gets full attention and polish
- Sustainable pace—no burnout from trying to perfect everything simultaneously
About the Creator
This course is built by someone who learned cryptography the hard way—through trial, error, and countless hours reading man pages.
Why I built this:
- Plenty of theoretical crypto education exists (too abstract)
- Plenty of “how to use Signal” tutorials exist (too basic)
- Almost nothing in between: practical CLI cryptography for Linux users
My promise: No BS. No hype. Just practical skills that work in the real world.
This site is rated AIL-2 (Human Created, Major AI Augmentation) using Daniel Miessler’s AI Influence Level framework.
What this means: The curriculum design, core content, and every hands-on walkthrough are human-directed. AI assists with formatting, prose refinement, and site generation. Transparency matters. Especially here.
“Privacy tools are for protection, not harm.”
Legitimate Uses
- Protecting personal data from breaches
- Securing communications for journalists and activists
- Privacy as a fundamental right
- Authorized security testing
- Understanding systems to defend them
Not For
- ✕ Illegal activities or circumventing laws
- ✕ Unauthorized access to systems
- ✕ Harassment, fraud, or malicious purposes
Legal Considerations
Know your local laws. Some jurisdictions restrict encryption tools or anonymous communication. You’re responsible for understanding and complying with laws in your region.
Privacy tools don’t make you untouchable. They protect your rights while you act lawfully. No system is perfect—evaluate your risks accordingly.
We practice what we teach.
Verify us cryptographically.
No trust required—just math.
Cypherpunk School is free forever.
If you’ve found value here, consider supporting our mission:
Support with Monero or Bitcoin →This course evolves with you.
- Report errors—found a bug or broken link? Contact us
- Suggest improvements—what worked? What didn’t?
- Contribute—new content, translations, or code improvements
- Share carefully—help others find this course (pseudonyms encouraged)
What’s coming:
- Open source the course content (contributions welcome)
- Translations to other languages
- Community discussion via SimpleX
- Advanced modules and specialized topics
“Cypherpunks write code. We know that someone has to write software to defend privacy, and since we can’t get privacy unless we all do, we’re going to write it.”— Eric Hughes, A Cypherpunk’s Manifesto