About Power On

Power On is a collective initiative to help people reclaim control over their digital lives

— especially when that control has been stripped away by

abuse, surveillance, or coercion.

It began as a collaboration between writer and activist Meltem Arikan and a group of privacy and security facilitators working with survivors of intimate partner abuse. The project is supported by /ut7, a Paris-based cooperative (SCOP) founded in 2007, specializing in agile software development, philosophical inquiry, and digital/philosophical learning spaces.

Together, we’ve built workshops, tools, labs and guides that anyone can use, remix, and adapt, to:

  • Clean a compromised device (or better yet, spot the signs early)
  • Set up a secure phone or laptop from scratch
  • Build a DIY tech lab in a shelter or community space
  • Spot deepfakes, manipulated images and digital traps
  • Run peer-led workshops in your own language, culture, and context

We don’t assume trust in platforms, companies, or institutions. We don’t expect you to have money, advanced skills, or access to professional help. And we don’t treat safety as a checklist.

This is about power — digital, physical, social — and how to take some of it back.

Why this matters

Survivors often face the same three problems:

  1. Their devices aren’t safe.
  2. The tech support around them doesn’t get it.
  3. The tools that could help feel overwhelming or inaccessible.

This site tries to change that. We offer practical, language-accessible, open-source tools to make it easier to start — whether you’re supporting someone else or figuring things out for yourself.

How to use this site

Everything here is modular, localisable, remixable, and available under permissive open licences. You’ll find:

  • The Lab: DIY security infrastructure, from clean computers to local backups.
  • The Guides: Bite-sized instructions for common problems like securing comms or disabling spyware.
  • The Workshops: Hands-on, group-based materials to help communities skill up together.

Start wherever makes sense. Translate. Adapt. Break things and make them better.

We trust you to know what you need.

Power On is built with stubborn optimism, dry humour, and a refusal to give up the digital space.

Need help? Want to contribute? Get in touch.