National Whistleblowers Center

What National Whistleblowers Center does

The National Whistleblower Center (NWC) is a tax-exempt, non-partisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit advocacy organization founded in 1988 in Washington, D.C. by three whistleblower attorneys — Stephen M. Kohn, Michael D. Kohn, and David K. Colapinto — initially to challenge coercive non-disclosure agreements at the Comanche Peak nuclear power plant. Over 35+ years NWC has been the principal U.S. nonprofit dedicated to whistleblower protection, advocacy, and public education, serving individual whistleblowers, attorneys, policymakers, and journalists across U.S. federal and state jurisdictions and internationally.

NWC's core services are an Attorney Referral Program (ARP) free to whistleblowers and operated jointly with the National Whistleblower Legal Defense and Education Fund; a grassroots Action Alert Network of hundreds of thousands of supporters; the award-winning handbook 'Rules for Whistleblowers' by Stephen M. Kohn; an extensive FAQ and Know Your Rights library; research reports and amicus briefs; and policy advocacy across Dodd-Frank, Sarbanes-Oxley, the False Claims Act, IRS, SEC, AML, and emerging AI-specific whistleblower protections. Its single proprietary technology asset is the Secure Internet Wildlife Crime Reporting System, winner of the 2016 USAID Wildlife Crime Tech Challenge Grand Prize, which enables anonymous wildlife crime reporting.

NWC is funded primarily through individual donations and grassroots support, with a complimentary book given to donors at $50 or more. The Attorney Referral Program generates modest revenue via attorney contributions upon case settlement. NWC maintains global advocacy reach through NGO-observer status at the UN Convention Against Corruption, partnerships with WhistleblowersUK, WWF, INECE, the Environmental Law Institute, and the International Bar Association, and engagement on U.S. congressional testimony.

Name

National Whistleblowers Center

Legal name

National Whistleblower Center

Website

https://whistleblowers.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Founded in 1988, the National Whistleblower Center is a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that advocates for whistleblower protections, runs an Attorney Referral Program, mobilizes a grassroots Action Alert Network, and educates the public on U.S. and international whistleblower laws.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Whistleblower Advocacy and Legal Services

NAICS

Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Ethics, Integrity & Whistleblowing Program Advisory (BPAHAFAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Whistleblowing, Speak-Up Culture & Investigations Training (EDABADAL), Policy Management, Training & Ethics/Whistleblowing (BPAEAPAI)

Keywords

• Whistleblower advocacy
• Whistleblower protection
• Legal referral services
• Nonprofit policy advocacy
• Whistleblower education

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, NWC is dependent on public support and donations to fund its advocacy work for whistleblower rights and protections. Donors of $50 or more receive a complimentary copy of Rules for Whistleblowers.
2. Attorney Referral Program: The Attorney Referral Program connects whistleblowers with attorneys. The program is free for whistleblowers. The National Whistleblower Legal Defense and Education Fund manages referrals, with attorney contributions requested only when cases settle with contingency fees or court-ordered attorney fees.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The National Whistleblower Center (NWC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit advocacy organization that provides whistleblower support services, including a free Attorney Referral Program connecting whistleblowers with private sector attorneys, an Action Alert grassroots mobilization network, and educational resources such as the Rules for Whistleblowers handbook, FAQs, and Know Your Rights guides. It also engages in legislative advocacy for stronger whistleblower protection laws in the U.S. and internationally.

Product overview

The National Whistleblower Center (NWC) is a nonprofit advocacy organization that operates as a service-based platform rather than a traditional software product company. The organization provides whistleblower protection and support services organized around its core Attorney Referral Program (connecting whistleblowers with legal representation), the award-winning Rules for Whistleblowers handbook, and its Action Alert Network for grassroots advocacy mobilization. NWC complements these with comprehensive Know Your Rights educational resources, an extensive FAQ library, research publications and reports, priority advocacy campaigns (AI Whistleblower Protection Act, Federal Whistleblower protection, False Claims Act protection, SEC reform, IRS program revitalization, AML regulations), news and insights content, events programming (including UN conferences and National Whistleblower Day), and a whistleblower resources hub. The organization has been supporting whistleblowers since 1988 and is based in Washington, D.C.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Attorney Referral Program (ARP) A free program that connects whistleblowers with private sector attorneys who can represent them in retaliation, discrimination, qui tam, and other whistleblower lawsuits through confidential intake forms reviewed under attorney-client privilege.
• Rules for Whistleblowers An award-winning handbook written by Stephen M. Kohn, described as the first-ever guide to whistleblowing, providing step-by-step guidance on using U.S. federal and state whistleblower laws including IRS, SEC, and False Claims Act/qui tam reward laws. Available free with donations of $50 or more.
• Secure Internet Wildlife Crime Reporting System A secure online platform where whistleblowers can safely and anonymously file reports of wildlife crimes; NWC's Grand Prize-Winning solution from the Wildlife Crime Tech Challenge in 2016.

Quantifiable outcome

• Recovered over $100 billion in fraud through whistleblower-initiated cases including $72 billion via False Claims Act, $6.3 billion via SEC program, $6.6 billion via IRS program
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• WhistleblowersUKcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 June 2025NWC and WhistleblowersUK co-host events including the Managing Risks and Rewards conference at the UK Parliament Palace of Westminster to examine how US-style whistleblower reward programs are reshaping the global fight against corruption.
• WWF TNRC ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormer NWC Executive Director John Kostyack co-authored a Topic Brief with WWF explaining how whistleblower protections can help expose and prosecute environmental crimes threatening wildlife, fisheries, and forests.
• International Network of Environmental Compliance and Enforcement (INECE)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerINECE partnered with NWC to deliver four webinars on the role of whistleblowers and citizens in enforcing environmental law, hosted by the Environmental Law Institute.
• Environmental Law Institute (ELI)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerELI hosted the joint INECE-NWC webinar series on whistleblowers and citizen enforcement of environmental law.
• National Whistleblower Legal Defense and Education FundcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNWC's partner organization that sponsors the Attorney Referral Program. The Fund reviews whistleblower case intakes and makes referrals to private sector attorneys. The Fund is managed independently from NWC.
• International Bar AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNWC participates in the IBA Anti-Corruption Conference, meeting with anti-corruption lawyers around the world to share how they can effectively represent international whistleblowers through anti-corruption laws such as FCPA and AML.
• United Nations Convention Against CorruptioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNWC participates as a civil society group in the Conference of the States Parties (CoSP) to UNCAC. As an approved NGO observer, NWC works with a network of anti-corruption organizations, agencies, and state parties.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• International Bar Association Anti-Corruption Committee: Professional body of legal practitioners where NWC actively participates through the Anti-Corruption Conference. Comparable international professional network relevant to NWC's attorney referral and anti-corruption mission, but not a direct advocacy peer.
• World Wildlife Fund (WWF): Partner on environmental whistleblower topic briefs (TNRC Project). Not a direct whistleblower advocacy peer, but a thematically adjacent organization that collaborates with NWC on the environmental enforcement side of its mission.

Broad incumbents

• Transparency International: Global coalition against corruption that promotes whistleblower protections and legal reform internationally. Comparable to NWC's international advocacy work, especially its participation in UNCAC, but covers a much wider anti-corruption mandate.
• Project on Government Oversight (POGO): Established U.S. government accountability nonprofit that investigates corruption and supports whistleblowers as part of a broader watchdog portfolio. Comparable advocacy/oversight function with a wider mission scope than NWC.

Direct peers

• Taxpayers Against Fraud (TAF): Nonprofit dedicated to protecting the False Claims Act and supporting qui tam whistleblowers. Closely aligned mission to NWC's "Protect the False Claims Act" campaign, serving the same whistleblower segments and attorneys.
• National Whistleblower Legal Defense and Education Fund: Sister 501(c)(3) organization that operates NWC's Attorney Referral Program. Same leadership orbit, complementary mission focused on legal defense and education for whistleblowers.
• Government Accountability Project (GAP): U.S.-based nonprofit that provides legal advocacy, exposure, and support to whistleblowers across government and corporate sectors. Directly comparable mission, advocacy model, and target audience (whistleblowers and policymakers) to NWC.
• WhistleblowersUK: UK-based nonprofit advocating for stronger whistleblower laws and protections; co-hosts events with NWC at the UK Parliament. Directly comparable advocacy, education, and policy mission focused on whistleblowers.

Regional players

• Protect (formerly Public Concern at Work): UK charity that provides confidential advice to whistleblowers and advocates for safer whistleblowing laws. Directly comparable advocacy and advisory function, but primarily serves UK/European whistleblowers rather than U.S.-focused NWC.

Emerging players

• NAVEX Global (EthicsPoint / Whistleblower Hotline): Commercial provider of ethics and compliance hotlines, case management, and whistleblower intake SaaS. Operates in the same whistleblower infrastructure stack as NWC's reporting systems, but as a for-profit vendor rather than a nonprofit advocate.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/StopFraud
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC7eNYcD8VvpcBcr5iHkI3JA
• Facebookfacebook.com/43222711183
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/national-whistleblower-center
• Instagraminstagram.com/whistleblowers_nwc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about National Whistleblowers Center