this post was submitted on 08 Mar 2026
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Privacy
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Check the news. Proton literally unmasked the identity of a paying customer to the FBI. Delivering someone's identity is as bad if not worse than delivering messages: at that point it matters not if your data is encrypted because now the FBI can target you for $5-wrench torture.
Half true.
This post is about VPN. And Proton VPN is still safe.
Your info/news is on Proton Mail. In this case Proton was legally obliged (Swiss law) to give out identifying data for the owner of a known email address. The owner used a credit card and they had to give up the credit card info. The content and communications inside their email account is still private and was not given out. If they had used cash or crypto for paying, proton might have had no information to give out to the authorities. And again, they were obliged by law.
If the only defense a company has for giving away information about (paying!) customers to an agency of a fascist country known for disappearing people is "I was just obeying orders!", may I remind you of the Nuremberg Trials. But, well, I guess there's nothing better to expect from Proton on that end. The Swiss were, after all, well-known for taking all that Nazi gold without any complaints.
Just follow orders, like a good soldier.
why, what should have they done? close shop and go to jail for not complying?
you have unrealistic expectations. if you are high risk, you should only access their services over their onion site and only pay in crypto or gift cards. they give all the tools one needs to stay truly anonymous.
In the least, fight it more in court. Isn't that the entire point of the thing, to keep things looping around via lawyers? Maybe notify the user beforehand, as well.
In the most, not have hosted that data in the first place. No need to keep subscription data if you implement one-time lifetime plans, for example.
that can be done in questionable cases, but not all is like that. often the law is very clear about what do they need to comply with, isn't it?
I am not a lawyer but I doubt they are allowed to do that
as I said in my previous comment, they accept payments in crypto. but I think they also accept payments in cash over mail