The Free Software Foundation honored the , which works to ensure anonymity online and defend users against network surveillance and traffic analysis. According to the Free Software Foundation, the Tor Project's network has been used by 36 million people globally "to experience freedom of access and expression on the Internet while keeping them in control of their privacy and anonymity" and "proved pivotal in dissident movements in both Iran and more recently Egypt."

FREE YOURSELF:

The Tor Project received the foundation's Award for Projects of Social Benefit, which in previous years has gone to the Internet Archive, Creative Commons, Groklaw and Wikipedia.

The Free Software Foundation, founded by Richard Stallman, gave its individual Award for the Advancement of Free Software to Rob Savoye, who has worked on dozens of projects including One Laptop Per Child and led the effort to produce , a free software Flash player.

The Free Software Foundation says software is "free" when users are free to study the source code, manipulate it and redistribute it as they wish. The free software designation does not require that software be given away, although in practice much free software is available at no cost.