In an unexpected mask off “secure” email and VPN provider Proton took the stance of siding with the fascist MAGA Reps. Proton’s services are no option for me and many others any longer. Let’s collect and discuss alternatives (E2E encrypted email and VPN) here 🔐👇

Always try to provide:

-Server location (jurisdiction)

-Governance

-Integrity/trustworthiness/transparency

-User experience/ease of use (grade 1 to 10, lets take Proton as a benchmark with an 8)

-Pricing and links

If you know alternative setups, feel free to share, too.

#ProtonExodus

Background: https://lemmy.ca/comment/13913116

Edit:typo

    • The Hobbyist@lemmy.zip
      2·
      6 months ago

      Am I the only that don’t see this the same way as the rest? I am in way way endorsing or supporting MAGA, but they did take action against big tech (though for reasons of retribution) and I see Proton only acknowledging a good person being designated to lead the next antitrust efforts, apparently with a good track record.

      Proton also acknowledges Lina Kahn who has done a great job, nominated under Joe Biden.

      Ultimately, I feel like from a perspective of Proton, any win against Big Tech, is a good win, and I can’t disagree.

      There is a longer discussion to be had around how the dems were supported by oligarchs and I think that’s what Proton is referring to, they decided to turn a blind eye under the Obama administration for instance. Bernie Sanders goes to lengths about this in this interview, illuminating: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzkgWDCucNY

      So all in all, maga sucks, new pick probably good, and in my view, proton not actually endorsing maga/trump but just acknowledging a good pick.

      Did I miss something?

      • Eatspancakes84@lemmy.world
        2·
        6 months ago

        The main part of the message that pissed me off was the idea that GOP sides with the “little guy”. First, it’s demonstrably false. Second, he is a tech CEO. He wouldn’t recognise a little guy before his security crew has time to forcibly remove him.

    • AbouBenAdhem@lemmy.worldEnglish
      1·
      6 months ago

      I thought they were talking about the elementary particle—I was afraid we’d have to find some other way of manifesting our physical existence.

  • marcie (she/her)@lemmy.ml
    3·
    6 months ago

    Truly unhinged that they decided to come out on this. Fellas, you are fucking Swiss why throw yourself under the bus for the US election

    • Empricorn@feddit.nlEnglish
      1·
      6 months ago

      Because terrible people literally can’t help themselves. Wait for people to show you who they truly are, they will…

  • c1a5s1c@feddit.orgEnglish
    1·
    6 months ago

    Maybe not the contribution that you’re looking for, but going to tell you this story regardless.

    I am Swiss, and am a former Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA / EDA) employee. My colleagues and I had organized an evening on cybersecurity, where we showcase what Switzerland has to offer. I invited stakeholders such as:

    • Dreamlab (really cool company, should look them up if you don’t know of them)
    • NCSC (Swiss National Cyber Security Center)
    • Some Swiss cyber regulator; and
    • Proton

    Firstly, when speaking to a delegate of one of the above listed (don’t feel comfortably sharing publicly which one), he ushered a statement; upon me saying I’m a huge Proton fan and subscribed to all services - “they are lying to your faces”.

    I was curious, so I spoke with the regulators and NCSC delegates, they said that Proton has been involved in a handful of leaks - some that were made public, some behind the scenes.

    When I spoke to Andy, having told him that I grew up in Canada, I asked him what his plan was for North America. His response: “I will gladly take their money, but never open up shop there - too many national security departments that come knocking on the door”.

    Now I see that (on the Proton page), that they are looking for a few US based positions for Marketing and Growth - going against what we discussed a few years back. In all honesty, I still have a Plus subscription with them, but beginning to questions a lot more things regarding security and ethics at Proton. Guess I’ll just self-host in the future. Trust no one but yourself with your personal data.

  • ShotDonkey@lemmy.worldOP
    1·
    6 months ago

    OK I think I will move to Posteo. Great security, privacy focussed, servers in Germany, running with 100% renewable energy. Prices are ok, too. Ticks all boxes.

      • Hannes@feddit.org
        2·
        6 months ago

        If this wasn’t enough of a wakeupcall to not put all the eggs in one basket then what is? Companies are literally doing this to lock you into their service so it’s harder to switch since you then have to find X new services instead of just one.

        Better go with one that’d specialized for each service you need…

  • sadTruth@lemmy.hogru.chEnglish
    1·
    6 months ago

    There are 2 kinds of companies:

    1. Evil companies
    2. Companies that are not evil YET.

    What this means in this case is that only your own E-Mail server running on a Raspi in your own home can be considered private or secure in the long run. Unfortunately this is really really hard to do, which is the only reason i have not done it yet.
    Personally i do not consider any E-Mail private, because E-Mail is not E2E-encrypted, and 99.9% of times one side of the conversation is going to be hosted on some shady companies servers.

    Of course Proton delivers a great service, because they make an insecure protocol a little less insecure, and i personally use Proton mail. Unfortunately their closed-source nature makes it impossible to switch providers without abandoning their great software.

    As for services like Drive, they can actually be hosted privately and securely on your own Raspi with stuff like NextCloud/OwnCloud.
    For those that can’t/don’t want to self-host, i would recommend paying for a hoster that hosts FOSS software and contributes to it either with money or code. In that case you would probably loose E2E-encryption, but gain the ability to switch providers once your provider turns on you. In that case at least some of your money would continue to offer value to you by having improved the software you are still using.

  • Timber@lemmy.blahaj.zone
    1·
    5 months ago

    systemli.org

    • Germany (I think)
    • Politically leftist
    • Very nice people
    • User experience 8, works fine and people put a lot of effort in
    • It’s free, but you need an invite code
  • Clbull@lemmy.world
    1·
    6 months ago

    If they think Dollar Store Hitler is going to stand up for small businesses then they’re about to have a rude awakening.

    • 100_kg_90_de_belin@feddit.it
      1·
      6 months ago

      Tech bros aren’t exactly known for a nuanced understanding of whatever isn’t bleeps and blips: that’s what you get when the educational system is nothing more than a pipeline for employment

  • HappyFrog@lemmy.blahaj.zone
    1·
    6 months ago

    I’ll still continue using proton, as I haven’t seen them staying from their goal just yet, but I’d love to see some alternatives non the less.

  • ziproot@lemmy.ml
    1·
    6 months ago

    Server locations: Riseup is in the US (Washington state), so keep that in mind. Disroot is in the Netherlands (part of the EU).

    Governance: Riseup: Look at their “about us” page. Disroot: Look at their “about” page. The terms of service are more detailed. tl;dr: As far as I can tell, these are run by leftists.

    Integrity/Transparency: I have no idea how to grade this.

    Ease of Use: Subjective. Riseup VPN is just: install the client, turn it on or off. Disroot is much better with a mail client of some kind, so if you already use one, it’s probably a 10, otherwise, the webmail server isn’t that great. Disroot also requries manual encryption (I’m biased here because I use Kmail which makes PGP really easy to use).

    Pricing and Links: Free https://riseup.net/en/vpn https://disroot.org/en/services/email

    tl;dr: Use collective-run services, not corporate-run services