We envision an equitable and inclusive digital future in which everyone has safe access to the tools and opportunities they need to reach their full potential.
Strategy and Five Year Plan
Launch of employee programs
Launch of first youth program
Brand development and launch
We supported a variety of programs and initiatives, including a multi-organization partnership, an in-house cyber safety education program, match-funding for one employee driven fundraiser, project grants to 15 beneficiary organizations, and core funding to 19 organizations selected through an inclusive process with the Avast employee community.
One of our first endeavors was to create a globally representative Youth Leadership Board (YLB) to provide guidance, direction, and input to the Avast Foundation, representing the youth voice as we develop not only youth-focused programs. Eight young people were recruited in mid-2021 to serve for one year on our inaugural YLB.
I joined the YLB because digital freedom is a fundamental right that we should all enjoy - and when all people unite to fight for it, there’s power in that.
Hector Fuentes Curras, Venezuela
Young people are often among the most vulnerable and disenfranchised. They have little collective access to power and influence. Yet it is their futures and wellbeing which are often most adversely affected by issues from climate change to growing inequality, including the digital divide, worldwide.
We are working toward more inclusive democracy and civil society. Technology can be used in innovative ways to engage people in pro-social activities and connect civil society, communities, and the private sector. The organizations we are supporting are working on initiatives like open government, social innovation, and increased transparency.
We set aside a portion of our annual funding for responsive work. This enables us to act quickly and nimbly in response to unforeseen crises, such as natural disasters, political or economic instability.
The Foundation has worked with the Avast employee community to amplify our collective impact. Volunteering, donation, and fundraising schemes animate our shared purpose and values of giving back and creating a better world. With the full support of Avast leadership, we embarked on a journey to co-design employee engagement programs with staff.
The Avast Foundation ambassadors were an integral part of our team, helping to co-design our employee programs, as well as continuously raise awareness about volunteering and donation activities among staff. We also enjoy and are extremely grateful for the broad support of the leadership and teams across the company, including PR, Marketing, Brand, Web, Legal, Finance, and Threat Intelligence, who provide direct support to enable our work.
Dan Casey
Collections Specialist
Tereza Sevcikova
Partnerships Specialist
Jakub Gros
Scrum Master
April Pressley
US Office Manager
We work to raise awareness and to convene and connect organizations, experts, and communities around key issues related to digital freedom and citizenship.
In 2021 we launched the #TrollFreeFuture campaign and a multi-year cooperation with Oxford University to sponsor two doctoral students conducting research into online trolling.
Anna George, a recipient of one studentship, researches online safety and specifically how extremist ideas spread online.
Research into online trolling - what prompts it, who does it, and how it harms those who are the frequent targets of trolls - has expanded widely in recent years, especially as victims of particularly vitriolic and hateful, sometimes racist, misogynistic, and even directly threatening online abuse have spoken out.
We commissioned a poll of 4,000 people in the US and UK during the summer of 2021. The results revealed that trolling behavior is fairly common, and while the worst abuse may be directed toward public figures, it also happens among closer contacts, like friends and associates.
We used these findings to drive awareness and generate engagement through our social media channels online, and we continue to return to these themes through our work with the YLB, Anna George, and others, as the topic is unfortunately evergreen.
On September 12, 2022, Avast merged with NortonLifeLock, Inc., and a successor company, Gen, was launched. Gen is a global company powering Digital Freedom through consumer brands including Norton, Avast, LifeLock, Avira, AVG, ReputationDefender, and CCleaner. Gen’s vision is to big vision to power Digital Freedom by protecting consumers and giving them control of their digital lives. Gen’s philanthropy and corporate responsibility program, Giving@Gen, is a big part of that mission, and will draw on the legacy of Avast Foundation and NortonLifeLock Cares programs.
To learn more about Giving@Gen, please visit Gen’s corporate responsibility website.
Learn more