Proton Mail: Difference between revisions
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Protonmail responded that it is not required to comply with authorities such as EUROPOL. Although this may be true, in cases of investigations, larger organizations from outside simply use the Swiss government as a middleman to facilitate any request they wish. ProtonMail is not anonymous, and any information will be handed over when requested by the Swiss government, which also cooperates with other investigative authorities, leading to essentially no protection in the event of such an occurrence.{{Citation needed|reason=link below is not for this topic}} | Protonmail responded that it is not required to comply with authorities such as EUROPOL. Although this may be true, in cases of investigations, larger organizations from outside simply use the Swiss government as a middleman to facilitate any request they wish. ProtonMail is not anonymous, and any information will be handed over when requested by the Swiss government, which also cooperates with other investigative authorities, leading to essentially no protection in the event of such an occurrence.{{Citation needed|reason=link below is not for this topic}} | ||
Proton has created video conferencing integrations with Zoom, a non-private platform.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Proton opts for Zoom videoconferencing |url=https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/proton-opts-for-zoom-videoconferencing/24569 |url-status=live |archive-url=https:// | Proton has created video conferencing integrations with Zoom, a non-private platform.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Proton opts for Zoom videoconferencing |url=https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/proton-opts-for-zoom-videoconferencing/24569 |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260217082923/https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/proton-opts-for-zoom-videoconferencing/24569 |archive-date=17 Feb 2026|access-date=2025-11-20 |website=Privacy Guides Community}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=How to add Zoom meetings to event invitations |url=https://proton.me/support/calendar-zoom |access-date=2025-11-20 |website=Proton}}</ref> <!-- Probably needs a new section unrelated to this incident. --> | ||
==Harsh inactive account policy== | ==Harsh inactive account policy== | ||
In 2022, ProtonMail announced a policy that entails the [[Inactive account deletion|deletion of inactive accounts]], resulting in major controversy. Many users have criticized the decisions and advocated for nuanced versions of inactive account policies, such as deleting only the email contents of any inactive Protonmail accounts instead of the accounts themselves, as the latter would reportedly result in major inconvenience for users who used the accounts as multiple-factor authentications for important services, such as banking. It has also been said that the harsh policy will adversely affect those who had good reasons to become inactive for a long time, such as hospitalization, prison incarceration, and being in totalitarian countries that have prolonged internet shutdowns.<ref>{{Cite web |last=ProtonMail |date=2022-04-14 |title=Protonmail's dormant policy is now in effect. |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/u3ejjp/protonmails_dormant_policy_is_now_in_effect/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https:// | In 2022, ProtonMail announced a policy that entails the [[Inactive account deletion|deletion of inactive accounts]], resulting in major controversy. Many users have criticized the decisions and advocated for nuanced versions of inactive account policies, such as deleting only the email contents of any inactive Protonmail accounts instead of the accounts themselves, as the latter would reportedly result in major inconvenience for users who used the accounts as multiple-factor authentications for important services, such as banking. It has also been said that the harsh policy will adversely affect those who had good reasons to become inactive for a long time, such as hospitalization, prison incarceration, and being in totalitarian countries that have prolonged internet shutdowns.<ref>{{Cite web |last=ProtonMail |date=2022-04-14 |title=Protonmail's dormant policy is now in effect. |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/u3ejjp/protonmails_dormant_policy_is_now_in_effect/ |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241218103805/https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/u3ejjp/protonmails_dormant_policy_is_now_in_effect/ |archive-date=18 Dec 2024|access-date=2025-11-20 |website=Reddit}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-04-14 |title=Protonmail's dormant policy is now in effect. |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/u3g406/protonmails_dormant_policy_is_now_in_effect/ |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20221016093816/https://old.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/u3g406/protonmails_dormant_policy_is_now_in_effect/ |archive-date=16 Oct 2022|access-date=2025-11-20 |website=Reddit}}</ref> | ||
In response, ProtonMail added an exemption, where the inactive account policy would not apply to any accounts that had premium subscriptions at one point; however,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Update to our inactive account policy |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/uca15y/update_to_our_inactive_account_policy/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https:// | In response, ProtonMail added an exemption, where the inactive account policy would not apply to any accounts that had premium subscriptions at one point; however,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Update to our inactive account policy |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/uca15y/update_to_our_inactive_account_policy/ |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250402195858/https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/uca15y/update_to_our_inactive_account_policy/ |archive-date=2 Apr 2025|access-date=2025-11-20 |website=Reddit}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ashwin |first= |date=2022-04-27 |title=ProtonMail will not delete user accounts for inactivity if the user had paid for a subscription at any point |url=https://www.ghacks.net/2022/04/27/protonmail-will-not-delete-inactive-user-accounts-for-former-premium-subscribers/ |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250316094922/https://www.ghacks.net/2022/04/27/protonmail-will-not-delete-inactive-user-accounts-for-former-premium-subscribers/ |archive-date=16 Mar 2025|access-date=2025-11-20 |website=ghacks.net}}</ref> at one point, although the exemption was revoked as of 2024.{{CitationNeeded|reason=any official announcements?}} <!-- This change is visible in the support article though. before : https://archive.ph/H3jjI | after : https://archive.ph/BEEuw --> ProtonMail accounts created before April 9, 2024, have a two-year grace period before being subject to the policy, as opposed to one year for newer accounts.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Inactive Accounts |url=https://proton.me/support/inactive-accounts |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260131180800/https://proton.me/support/inactive-accounts |archive-date=31 Jan 2026|access-date=2025-11-20 |website=Proton}}</ref> In some cases, users have reported success in recovering their inactive accounts after being locked under the policy.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Account is no longer available due to inactivity |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/1i7gbd7/account_is_no_longer_available_due_to_inactivity/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260222223819/https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/1i7gbd7/account_is_no_longer_available_due_to_inactivity/ |archive-date=22 Feb 2026|access-date=2025-11-20 |website=Reddit}}</ref> | ||
As of 2025, many users continue to voice their concerns regarding the inactive account policy, advocating for sensible measures such as deleting only the contents of inactive accounts while sparing the accounts themselves.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Inactive account policy - keep account when deleting data {{!}} How can we improve Proton? |url=https://protonmail.uservoice.com/forums/945460-general-ideas/suggestions/48235556-inactive-account-policy-keep-account-when-deleti |url-status=live |archive-url=https:// | As of 2025, many users continue to voice their concerns regarding the inactive account policy, advocating for sensible measures such as deleting only the contents of inactive accounts while sparing the accounts themselves.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Inactive account policy - keep account when deleting data {{!}} How can we improve Proton? |url=https://protonmail.uservoice.com/forums/945460-general-ideas/suggestions/48235556-inactive-account-policy-keep-account-when-deleti |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260212110648/https://protonmail.uservoice.com/forums/945460-general-ideas/suggestions/48235556-inactive-account-policy-keep-account-when-deleti |archive-date=2025-11-20 |access-date=2025-11-20 |website=protonmail.uservoice.com}}</ref> | ||
The Proton team has stated on Reddit that the inactive account policy aims to "manage their resources in a sustainable way". In the comments, it was noted that retaining the accounts themselves indefinitely and only purging their contents would not noticeably increase operating costs compared to deleting entire accounts, given that login information is all that would have to be retained. ProtonMail also does not allow registering email accounts with the same address as deleted email accounts to prevent impersonation, which would be possible only because it retains the deleted email addresses in its records.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-04-09 |title=Proton's New Policy for Free Inactive Accounts |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/1bzt1ka/protons_new_policy_for_free_inactive_accounts/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https:// | The Proton team has stated on Reddit that the inactive account policy aims to "manage their resources in a sustainable way". In the comments, it was noted that retaining the accounts themselves indefinitely and only purging their contents would not noticeably increase operating costs compared to deleting entire accounts, given that login information is all that would have to be retained. ProtonMail also does not allow registering email accounts with the same address as deleted email accounts to prevent impersonation, which would be possible only because it retains the deleted email addresses in its records.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-04-09 |title=Proton's New Policy for Free Inactive Accounts |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/1bzt1ka/protons_new_policy_for_free_inactive_accounts/ |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250128155913/https://old.reddit.com/r/ProtonMail/comments/1bzt1ka/protons_new_policy_for_free_inactive_accounts/ |archive-date=28 Jan 2025|access-date=2025-11-20 |website=Reddit}}</ref> <!-- "would only be possible / is only possible" is strong language, needs rewording. also is there an "unless...?" on this justification --> | ||
==Data portability== | ==Data portability== | ||
Until around 2023, there was no way for users without a paid subscription to create local backups of all of their emails at once (an example of [[data lock-in]]). Paying users could utilize the Proton Mail Bridge to download their emails via the IMAP protocol using an external client, such as Thunderbird or Outlook. In contrast, free users were limited to downloading each email individually, making it impractical for backup purposes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=How to export and import emails |url=https://protonmail.com/support/knowledge-base/export-import-emails/ |url-status=unfit |archive-url= | Until around 2023, there was no way for users without a paid subscription to create local backups of all of their emails at once (an example of [[data lock-in]]). Paying users could utilize the Proton Mail Bridge to download their emails via the IMAP protocol using an external client, such as Thunderbird or Outlook. In contrast, free users were limited to downloading each email individually, making it impractical for backup purposes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=How to export and import emails |url=https://protonmail.com/support/knowledge-base/export-import-emails/ |url-status=unfit |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20220426212143/https://protonmail.com/support/knowledge-base/export-import-emails/ |archive-date=26 Apr 2022|access-date=2025-11-20 |website=ProtonMail}}</ref> | ||
Since approximately 2023, Proton Technologies has offered an export tool that anyone can utilize.<ref>{{Cite web |title=How to export and restore emails using the Proton Mail Export Tool |url=https://proton.me/support/proton-mail-export-tool |url-status=live |archive-url=https:// | Since approximately 2023, Proton Technologies has offered an export tool that anyone can utilize.<ref>{{Cite web |title=How to export and restore emails using the Proton Mail Export Tool |url=https://proton.me/support/proton-mail-export-tool |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260131212130/https://proton.me/support/proton-mail-export-tool |archive-date=31 Jan 2026|access-date=2025-11-20 |website=Proton}}</ref> | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
<references /> | <references /> | ||
[[Category:Proton]] | [[Category:Proton]] | ||