# ionscale privacy rating

Open-source, self-hosted Tailscale control server with support for multiple tailnets, OIDC login, ACLs and DNS, used with the official Tailscale clients.

## Summary

ionscale scores 76 out of 100 (grade B) on the mesh VPNs and private networks criteria. It meets 5 of 7 criteria: open source, no trackers or telemetry, no ads or data sales, keys stay on devices and self-hosted coordination server. It does not meet independent audit. Still needing evidence: no connection logs by default.

- Website: https://jsiebens.github.io/ionscale/
- Source code: https://github.com/jsiebens/ionscale
- License: BSD-3-Clause
- Platforms: Linux
- Home page trackers: Google Fonts (not scored), Plausible (cookieless analytics)
- Category: [Mesh VPNs and private networks](https://privacyratings.com/mesh-vpns/)
- Grade: B (76/100)

## Criteria

| Criterion | Answer | Note | Evidence |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Open source | Yes | BSD-3-Clause. | https://github.com/jsiebens/ionscale/blob/main/LICENSE |
| No trackers or telemetry | Yes | No third-party trackers. The documentation site's Plausible analytics are cookieless and aggregate-only. | https://jsiebens.github.io/ionscale/ |
| No ads or data sales | Yes | Free community project with no ads or data sales. | https://github.com/jsiebens/ionscale |
| Independent audit | No | No independent audit is published. |  |
| Keys stay on devices | Yes | Works with the official Tailscale clients, which create WireGuard keys on each device. The control server only exchanges public keys. | https://tailscale.com/blog/how-tailscale-works |
| Self-hosted coordination server | Yes | The whole control server is open source and self-hosted. | https://jsiebens.github.io/ionscale/ |
| No connection logs by default | Unknown |  |  |

Source: https://privacyratings.com/mesh-vpns/ionscale/
Edit: https://github.com/privacyratings/privacyratings.com/edit/main/ratings/mesh-vpns/ionscale.md