What you're agreeing to
Proton's Terms of Service are straightforward: use the service lawfully, do not send spam, and do not abuse other users. Free accounts have storage limits and Proton can suspend accounts that violate the terms. Swiss law governs all agreements, giving users stronger privacy protections than US or EU jurisdiction.
Privacy in plain English
Proton Mail encrypts your emails end-to-end, meaning Proton cannot read your messages even if they wanted to. Your emails are stored encrypted on servers in Switzerland, which has among the strongest data protection laws in the world. Proton does not run advertising and does not sell user data.
Terms of Service: Breakdown
This means Proton's terms prioritize your rights rather than their own.
Key Clauses- Swiss jurisdiction: disputes are resolved under Swiss law, which offers stronger protections against government surveillance requests than US law.
- Account suspension: Proton can suspend accounts used for spam or illegal activity. Because messages are encrypted, they cannot actually read your emails to enforce this, so bans are based on complaints and metadata only.
- Paid tier limits: free accounts have 1GB storage. Proton can change storage limits but cannot access your content regardless of tier.
- Proton shares only the legally required minimum in response to valid Swiss court orders.
Privacy Policy: Breakdown
This means your emails are private even from Proton itself. No red flags were identified. Zero-knowledge encryption means Proton holds the encrypted data but not the keys to decrypt it. IP addresses are anonymized after a short period unless you use Proton VPN, which eliminates them entirely. Proton has published every government data request it has received and what it was able to provide. Third-party sharing: zero for advertising. Legal requests receive the minimum information legally required under Swiss law. Privacy advocate verdict: if you care about email privacy, Proton is the right choice. It is the only major email provider that cannot hand over your message contents even under legal pressure.
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