The IT ministry has reportedly decided to issue an order blocking end-to-end encrypted email service ProtonMail. According to a report in Hindustan Times, the government is planning to block the email service at the request of the Tamil Nadu police over a hoax bomb threat sent to at least thirteen private schools in Chennai on February 8. The report says that the decision to block ProtonMail was taken at a meeting of the 69A blocking committee on Wednesday (February 14).
A Proton spokesperson told the publication that the company has received the request from MeitY “a few days ago”. “We are currently working to resolve this situation and are investigating how we can best work together with the Indian authorities to do so. We understand the urgency of the situation and are completely clear that our services are not to be used for illegal purposes. We routinely remove users who are found to be doing so and are willing to cooperate wherever possible within international cooperation agreements,” the spokesperson said.
Really amazes me how our government handles situations like these in the worst ways possible. Really hope the idiots at the top of the ladder get some braincells and see how stupid this whole debacle is
The block order hasn’t been initiated “”“yet”“” but knowing the stance the Indian Government has on encryption as a whole, it’s not much to go with.
Say the service does get blocked then the app will be available through F-Droid but the website will most likely be blocked by most ISPs. if any Indian user still wishes to continue using PM if a block order is initiated then they’ll most likely have to use a VPN or a proxy server or through Tor. It’ll also be possible to access the website if they use a different DNS.
I’m really hoping it doesn’t end up being banned but seeing how the Indian government banned VLC a few years ago (unbanned it later on however) for the stupidest reasons possible… Yeah it doesn’t exactly induce much confidence…
Was going to say how they likely only meant they won’t accept email from Proton, then I read the article. Hyper-react, India?
That’s assuming the whole thing wasn’t manufactured to create an excuse to ban encrypted emails.
nah that thought crossed my mind too, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was for that reason tbh
I think you expect too much from Indian boomers
They never will, we have to vote them out.
Man, can’t wait to see what they do to ban those that manufacture knives the next time someone gets attacked by a criminal with one. /s
Are they going to ban phones if someone uses one of those for the same purpose?
India is slowly becoming their neighbor everyday
Sadly yes, this digital authoritarianism is very concerning and immensely worrying
Not just digital sadly. 😮💨😮💨😮💨
Btw Internet Freedom Foundation (or the IFF) filed several RTI requests (RTI = Request to information) regarding this situation. If anyone wants to follow their progress then here’s their Mastodon account: https://mastodon.world/@internetfreedom@mas.to
The IFF is a highly trustworthy and well respected organization that fights for Indians digital rights and democratic freedoms. They’ve done a lot of good work over the years, they even helped VLC to get unblocked when it was banned in India.
Here’s their toot mentioning the situation with Proton Mail: https://mastodon.world/@internetfreedom@mas.to/111935324571240375
They probably typed it with a keyboard. They should ban them too.
Blocking committee lol
Thanks, Indian government. You’ve convinced me to sign up for Proton Mail
