Why India Wants to Ban Proton Mail?

The Karnataka High Court has ordered the Indian government to block access to Proton Mail, a popular encrypted email service, across the country.

The directive came during a hearing on Tuesday, following a complaint by New Delhi-based M Moser Design Associates, which alleged that its employees had received obscene and vulgar emails via Proton Mail.

Justice M Nagaprasanna, presiding over the case, cited the Information Technology Act 2008 in his ruling, instructing authorities to proceed with the ban while considering the court's observations.

The complaint, originally filed in January, stated that Proton Mail had refused to disclose information about the sender despite an official police complaint.

Moreover, Jatin Sehgal, representing M Moser Design Associates, argued that Proton Mail presents a broader national security concern that extends beyond the petitioner’s specific case.

It was noted that the service has withdrawn its servers from India and was recently linked to incidents involving bomb threats sent to schools nationwide.

Proton Mail, based in Switzerland, has previously resisted similar legal actions. In 2023, Tamil Nadu police requested a block after the platform was linked to hoax bomb threats, but Swiss authorities intervened to prevent the ban from taking effect.

Under Swiss law, Proton is legally prohibited from sharing user data with foreign authorities and is therefore obligated to reject any direct requests from such authorities.

This could be another reason the Indian government, over time, has tried to ban Proton Mail.

Proton Mail plays a vital role in protecting online privacy and secure communication. As an end-to-end encrypted email service based in Switzerland, it ensures that only the sender and recipient can access the content of emails—even Proton Mail itself cannot read user messages.

This makes it particularly important for journalists, activists, whistleblowers, and anyone concerned about surveillance or data breaches.