ProtonMail provided the IP address of a user to Swiss authorities, investigating a climate change activist known to use an email address at the privacy-promising service. ProtonMail has said in the past that it does not collect user data, but it also admits it must yield to the authorities in Switzerland and has now deleted that promise from its website, according to The Register.
On Reddit's /r/ProtonMail forum, ProtonMail CEO Andy Yen wrote that emails are still encrypted end-to-end but it must comply.
"In this case, Proton received a legally binding order from the Swiss Federal Department of Justice which we are obligated to comply with. There was no possibility to appeal or fight this particular request because an act contrary to Swiss law did in fact take place (and this was also the final determination of the Federal Department of Justice which does a legal review of each case)." Details about how we handle Swiss law enforcement requests can found in our transparency report: https://protonmail.com/blog/transparency-report/
