A Karnataka high court has directed the Indian government to initiate proceedings to block the end-to-end encrypted email service Proton Mail across the country.
This order was issued by the High Court of Karnataka on April 29 in response to a legal complaint filed by M Moser Design Associated India Pvt Ltd in January 2025.
According to LiveLaw, the complaint alleged that the company’s staff had received emails containing obscene, abusive, and vulgar language, as well as AI-generated deepfake imagery and other sexually explicit content.
During a hearing, Justice M Nagaprasanna ordered the government to initiate proceedings under the Information Technology (IT) Act 2008 and the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards of blocking of Access of Information by Public) Rules, 2009 to block Proton Mail.
The court stated, “Till such proceedings are taken up and concluded by the government of India, the offending uniform resource locators (URLs) […] shall be blocked forthwith.”
As of now, Proton Mail remains accessible in India. The Hacker News has reached out to Proton Mail for comment and will update this story if we receive a response.
This is not the first time Proton Mail has faced a potential ban in India. Last year, the company stated that it’s “resolutely against the use of Proton services for purposes that are contrary to Swiss law” after reports emerged of hoax bomb threats being sent through the service.
Under Swiss law, Proton is not allowed to transmit any data to foreign authorities. However, the company is obligated to respond to orders from Swiss authorities, who may work with outside agencies to tackle illegal activities.
Proton emphasized that while end-to-end encryption provides strong privacy protections for users’ emails, files, calendar entries, and passwords, it is not permissible to use Proton Mail for purposes that are contrary to Swiss law.
