What is ProtonMail?

ProtonMail is an email service, it functions in much the same way that gmail and hotmail do, with a key difference: ProtonMail offers true end to end encryption! ProtonMail themselves couldn't read your emails even if they wanted to. You may be tired of Google spying on you in order to try and target you for advertisements, this will not happen with ProtonMail. Protonmail has it's own ios and android apps, allowing for ease of use.

Where is ProtonMail based?

ProtonMail is based in Switzerland, famous worldwide as one of the few countries in the world that still has privacy laws. Even governments have no legal right to force ProtonMail to hand over its customer's emails, and even if it could, all they would get is a bunch of encrypted gibberish.

What about the UI?

The user interface for the website as well as for mobile is very good. The layout is very clean and functional, and clearly alerts you when you receive an email. All of the usual email menus are located on the left, and all the emails on right, this is a layout you will be familiar with. You get 500MB of storage, which is pretty good, but if you should want to upgrade you can do so for 4 Euros a month. For this service you get 5GB or storage, 1 custom domain, 5 addresses as well as access to full support from their team. Most people will not need any of that, however the option is there should you need it. The mobile app allows for additional security features such as finger print scanning and pin protection (or both!) to open the app and allows customisation as to how often to ask for ID verification, ranging from every time you open the app to once every 60 minutes.

So do you recommend it?

Yes I do! I have been using ProtonMail for about a month now and I really like it. I have slowly been moving away from google products lately, choosing more privacy conscious alternatives. I don't have a bad word to say about ProtonMail, and I can't help but feel slightly James Bond like every time I open the app, reminding myself that I have a Swiss Account (albeit just an email account).

I will be writing more for the privacy conscious people out there in the coming days, helping people choose better options for web browsers, search engines and the like, so please do follow me and like this if you want to stop those pesky advertisers from spying on you!

Stay safe!

Viking