this post was submitted on 30 Jun 2026
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Piracy: ꜱᴀɪʟ ᴛʜᴇ ʜɪɢʜ ꜱᴇᴀꜱ

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I used Mullvad for a long time, but hearing about one of the two CEOs actively supporting and financing swedish Nazis, I'm looking to put my money elsewhere. That's the second one after Private Internet Access (who supported Gab).

I had AirVPN and Surfshark being recomnended, how do people here feel? What do you use?

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[–] lime@feddit.nu 42 points 4 weeks ago* (last edited 4 weeks ago) (6 children)

there was an article today about the entire mullvad company being blindsided by this and a lot of people being upset. with any luck the guy will leave or get thrown out.

also i think they're technically nazbols.

[–] akunohana@piefed.blahaj.zone 7 points 4 weeks ago (4 children)

This is the only reason for why I haven't demanded a refund of my remaining balance yet. I'm holding out for a dismissal or something.

[–] anothermember@feddit.uk 11 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)

Demanding a refund could add to the pressure though, you could always renew after he (hopefully) goes. I can't get a refund since mine has just run out but I'm not making any long-term decisions until the dust has settled.

[–] akunohana@piefed.blahaj.zone 2 points 4 weeks ago

I totally agree! It's just that I have two routers setup with them, running 24/7, and I have configured mom's devices with my account and I don't have the time to reconfigure all this with something else at the moment. 😩

[–] mecen@lemmy.ca 2 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)
[–] akunohana@piefed.blahaj.zone 1 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

There are many options. It's important to do some research on these options. It's also important to know why you want to choose a certain provider. Check their Terms of Service and Privacy Policy at the very least. For now, I'm looking into IVPN.

[–] nfreak@lemmy.ml 1 points 4 weeks ago

I'm giving it a week or two to see if anything happens while also researching alternatives

[–] fizzle@quokk.au 6 points 4 weeks ago (2 children)
[–] AllNewTypeFace@leminal.space 28 points 4 weeks ago (2 children)

Cofounder, and 50% owner. For him to get kicked out would take a lot.

[–] lime@feddit.nu 7 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)

he could be a rational human about it and see that it's bad for the brand. considering he was willing to work with a guy that actively dislikes what he did he may have a few braincells left.

[–] fizzle@quokk.au 8 points 4 weeks ago (2 children)

That kinda seems unlikely to me. I'm certain that he's aware that supporting ethnic cleansing (albeit not overtly violent) is not compatible with having customers.

[–] lime@feddit.nu 4 points 4 weeks ago

they don't tend to see it like that from my experience. but yeah the chance is slim.

[–] fizzle@quokk.au 5 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)

I think "would take a lot" might be understating it.

It's likely he'd have to be bought out by the other guy with an attractive offer.

[–] lime@feddit.nu 8 points 4 weeks ago

co-. the other founder is pretty pissed.

[–] rainwall@piefed.social 6 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (2 children)

This is likely true, but in the hacker news thread about this, the non Nazi cofounder was pretty defensive about what a great guy he was, and that there was just no way that him being a Nazi could ever effect Mullvad itself:

Here's one example, but these linked thread has more excuses hes made:

kfreds 1 day ago | root | parent | next [–]

I'm sorry to hear that. For what it's worth I think there's nuance in his decision that most people don't see. Of course that doesn't mean I think it was the right decision to make.

Here's something worth considering: why would someone whose ideal is open borders, who has been an animal rights activist, and someone who has led Mullvad for 17 years (with the track record it has), choose to donate to this party? If you like what Daniel and I have done together over the past 17 years, and now vehemently oppose his choice to make this donation, doesn't that make you just a little bit curious?

It made me curious. It didn't change my ultimate stance, but it did temper my emotions about it.

https://news.ycombinator.com/threads?id=kfreds

That level of denial feels custom made for them to give him a pass and keep him onboard.

[–] lime@feddit.nu 2 points 3 weeks ago

when you've known someone personally for that long you're bound to get defensive, i think. and the question is worth considering; why?

[–] merde@sh.itjust.works 3 points 4 weeks ago (3 children)

also i think they're technically nazbols.

what's a nazbol?

[–] Wildmimic@anarchist.nexus 7 points 4 weeks ago (2 children)

National Bolsheviks, in essence merging nazism with communism.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Bolshevism

[–] merde@sh.itjust.works 7 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)

National Bolsheviks, in essence merging nazism with communism.

Nazism+

what an awful idea

[–] Cowbee@lemmy.ml 1 points 3 weeks ago

That's why the bolsheviks purged them.

[–] FilthyHands@sh.itjust.works 6 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)
[–] Wildmimic@anarchist.nexus 5 points 4 weeks ago

Yes! Alternatively you can just put an Z there too, same meaning.

A Nazi, basically.

It stands for "national bolshevism," so tankies minus the leftism, which... yeah.

[–] lime@feddit.nu 4 points 4 weeks ago

national bolsheviks. basically ultranationalist tankies.

[–] anothermember@feddit.uk 0 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)
[–] lime@feddit.nu 3 points 4 weeks ago (1 children)

from the same paper that did the original reporting. swedish and paywalled unfortunately, but the first few paragraphs are readable.

[–] buckykat@hexbear.net 4 points 4 weeks ago

Extracted with firefox reader mode and machine translated:

Internal crisis at Mullvad: “Drags down the company” Jacob Lundberg 4–5 minutes

Last week, Flamman was able to reveal that tech profile Daniel Berntsson is the main financier of the Örebro Party, which is running for parliament with demands for “large-scale remigration”.

The news was presented to employees late on Friday evening, and according to several sources with insight, the information has led to an internal rebellion at the IT company Mullvad, where Berntsson is the owner and CEO.

Around a quarter of the employees gathered in an internal chat over the weekend, where they aired criticism of both the donation and the company's handling of the disclosure.

“I was shocked and sad, and at first surprised,” writes an employee to Flamman.

Another person says that it is both a “deep disappointment” and an “insult” to the company’s employees with a foreign background.

Berntsson himself commented on the news to employees during a meeting on Monday, where employees were allowed to ask questions. Sources to Flamman described the atmosphere before the meeting as tense.

To Flamman, Berntsson justified the donation with “resistance to corruption and dysfunction, creativity and the will to actually solve problems.” Regarding the party’s demand for “comprehensive remigration,” he said that it is needed in view of “today’s miserable situation.”

Several sources tell Flamman that Berntsson has emphasized at recent staff meetings that there are dividing lines among employees in their views on immigration.

“It was like a puzzle piece fell into place,” says an employee, after the revelation about the donation.

Another source says that he has not seen anyone among the staff express support for the donation. At the same time, the chat group for critical discussion still only brings together a minority of the staff.

However, another source believes that the critical group is probably larger.

“I suspect that not everyone dares to show what they think and feel,” he writes to Flamman.

The employees are critical of the donation for several reasons, including that many of the employees themselves are immigrants and “take this very personally.”

Several employees also point out that the Örebro Party’s attitude towards surveillance is at odds with Mullvad’s, as they have advocated increasing the number of surveillance cameras and enabling secret wiretapping in the hunt for criminals.

“Many of the staff believe that this disqualifies Daniel as the leader of a company like Mullvad,” the source writes.

The person also says that many have applied to Mullvad for ethical reasons, that the management's handling of the issue "definitely damaged trust" among the staff, and that several employees "in light of the donation are considering quitting". One person says that they will "look around for alternatives".

"My trust in the leadership is at rock bottom", says a third person.

The source also says that they see no other way forward than for Daniel Berntsson to step down as CEO. However, another employee sees it as unlikely that Berntsson, who owns 50 percent of the company, will step down on his own. At the meeting, he is also said to have rejected the idea.

"My guess is that he will stay just as before. If you look at how the official response is worded, it is about Mullvad standing for freedom of opinion. They are trying to emphasize that it is something he did as a private person, and that it is therefore not so bad."

However, the person remains critical:

"It's one thing to have opinions that don't match mine, but to make such a gigantic donation without realizing that he is bringing down both himself, Mullvad as a company and all employees at the same time. It makes me doubt his ability as CEO and manager."

Flamman has sought out Daniel Berntsson.