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ProtonMail Launches Free ProtonVPN Service For Macs (bleepingcomputer.com)

Posted by msmash on from the interesting-moves dept.

The creators of popular encrypted email service ProtonMail have released a free version of their ProtonVPN software for macOS. From a report: Even though the free version does not contain the full features that you would come to expect from a paid VPN service it is more than capable of obfuscating IP addresses and your location. While ProtonVPN has already released Windows and Android versions, according to Dr. Andy Yen, CEO of ProtonMail, their reason for releasing the free macOS version "is to make the world a safer place by ensuring that citizens around the world have access to an Internet free of spying and censorship. Releasing a free VPN service for macOS is another important step in that direction."

30 comments

  1. What the heck is an "encrypted mail service"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Do they encrypt my mails for me? What is that good for?

    1. Re: What the heck is an "encrypted mail service"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Allows you to use RUSSIAN IP ADDRESS to hack into DNC and steal election!

      -BeauHD-

  2. Awesome! (Even though I don't use Mac) by Murdoch5 · · Score: 1, Informative

    ProtonMail and ProtonVPN are excellent services that are miles ahead of others in the market.

  3. Needs ProtonTorpedos by jfdavis668 · · Score: 1

    When you need to take out someone via the Internet

    1. Re:Needs ProtonTorpedos by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      whut.. Isn't their proton collider good enough for you? (srsly; search for LHC)

  4. Slashdot... by The+Fat+Bastard · · Score: 1

    The new Freshmeat website for software announcements!

  5. Dr. Andy Yen, CEO of ProtonMail by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    does not contain the full features that you would come to expect from a paid VPN

    logs you

    make the world a safer place

    wat

    Internet free of spying and censorship

    logs you

    free VPN service for macOS

    why does it need a mac specific client. macos has vpn built in

    1. Re: Dr. Andy Yen, CEO of ProtonMail by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Don't spout crap. ProtonMail is a highly-respected firm in the secure communications space and is run on a non-profit model. It's very likely this is a genuine public service. If you read more about it, you'd see that the free version has limited server choices and lower speeds. It's not secretly logging you.

    2. Re: Dr. Andy Yen, CEO of ProtonMail by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's not secretly logging you.

      logs you

    3. Re: Dr. Andy Yen, CEO of ProtonMail by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      is run on a non-profit model.

      Uhh no, no its not. Its a commerical company. They're getting a large portion of their funding from a VC.

      It's not secretly logging you.

      How do you know for certain though? Bandwidth costs money, they're not doing this out of the goodness of their heart.

  6. This isn't news... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    This is an ad

    1. Re: This isn't news... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      At least it's a tech ad rather than the usual Democratic Party ads posted by the "editors."

    2. Re: This isn't news... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      what's the matter, little trumptard snowflake ? Butthurt that the first amendment applies to everyone, and not just to conservatives ?

  7. Free services are never free. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    And I sure as hell wouldn't trust a free VPN service of any kind for anything more sensitive than my pr0nz surfing habits.

  8. TANSTAAFL by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. What's the catch here? How are they making money off of this?

    Sounds like downstream of the VPN servers itself would be a GREAT place to snoop traffic. Its often a safe assumption that most VPN users are up to some sort of no good. It makes you look out of place compared to most internet users. I'm not saying thats right, but it is what it is.

  9. undo mod by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    oops

  10. Moving to Proton... by SuperKendall · · Score: 1

    I had just been considering moving my business email accounts off Google and over to Proton... seeing this makes it even more likely as I want to support this company.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
    1. Re:Moving to Proton... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

      I use their email and VPN services. They're very well polished. Steve Gibson and Leo LaPorte discussed this on the 'Security Now!' podcast (link below): ...

      "So ProtonMail is operated by Proton Technologies AG, which is a company based in Geneva with servers in two locations in Switzerland, which of course places both sets of servers outside of U.S. and EU jurisdiction, which may be important for some users. The default account setup is free, and the service is sustained by optional paid or just voluntarily. You can pay for services, or you can just send them some money to support them. And it's been a success. As of a year ago, January 2017, they had over two million users. It was initially a crowdfunded startup." ...

      "Remember, they have the public keys. They don't have the private keys. And that's cool because that allows them - so any email incoming is immediately encrypted with the recipient's public key, and they can't decrypt it from that point. And inter-ProtonMail traffic never leaves their servers, and essentially it comes from the user, and it's immediately encrypted with using the public key of its ProtonMail recipient and then waits there for that recipient to pick it up. So, for example, it would be easy if you wanted to set up a little network among a group to all use a free ProtonMail account, and all of your email stays on their servers and is always kept encrypted, and only the recipient is able to decrypt it after it's been transferred into their inbox." ...

      "ProtonMail is not impervious to a warrant from the Swiss authorities. And with the CLOUD Act, it's probably not impervious to U.S. authorities, either, in the long run. But PGP, only you have the key. They'd have to come to you and say unlock it. And at least you'd know."...

      https://www.grc.com/sn/sn-657....

    2. Re:Moving to Proton... by OneHundredAndTen · · Score: 1

      So, instead of giving Google access to your business data, you want to give it to Proton. Suit yourself.

    3. Re:Moving to Proton... by Gr8Apes · · Score: 1

      You misunderstand how Proton works. Email remains encrypted on their servers, only your client decrypts it.

      --
      The cesspool just got a check and balance.
    4. Re:Moving to Proton... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And anyone with a valid SSL cert that MiTMs you and appends a JS payload that dumps the unencrypted emails at point of decryption... Web based encrypted email relies solely on CA trust, which should not be trusted.

    5. Re:Moving to Proton... by Gr8Apes · · Score: 1

      You don't have a clue. It's end to end encryption. Public/Private key setups. If it's done right, no one sees the keys used, so theoretically only the intended recipient and the sender can see the decrypted mail. There's no SSL required to keep this secure. No MitM required, in fact, they can hand you a disk with the email being sent. You won't be able to read it. If they used 4096 bit keys, you won't be able to read it for something like 10B years, or true quantum computers are built, or you find an exploit in the encryption used.

      --
      The cesspool just got a check and balance.
    6. Re:Moving to Proton... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually _you_ don't have a clue.

      If I, as a bad actor, say a state actor, DNS poisoned your machine to go to my server instead of protonmail.ch's JS hosting domain, and I had a valid certificate (this is ONLY relevant because of client trust here), which is well within the abilities of state actors and demonstrably other less sophisticated groups, I could then change the JS your client is served, so when it does:

      decryptMessageAndDisplayToScreen(email)

      it instead does:

      decryptMessageAndDisplayToScreenAndSendToNsa(email)

      protonmail's entire security is dependent on CA authorities not issuing fradulent certificates. Truly secure encrypted email cannot occur in a browser. It doesn't matter what protonmail uses, public/private key cryptography, or ROT-13, if it's displayed to the browser window, it can be intercepted by JS and sent off elsewhere.

  11. VirusTotal - the windows install may be infected by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    https://www.virustotal.com/en/file/c519cc302e4944711a9fb1f1b72b234a893890f9af4ab0bbb4b08c90f7de3221/analysis/1527769752/

    one engine only though, likely a false positive

  12. Sounds like a proxy server by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This sounds less like a VPN and more like a proxy server.

  13. If you can't figure out what the product is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If you can't figure out what the product is... it's YOU!

    If you aren't paying for a VPN with your money, you're paying with your privacy.

    Read up on VPNs. The consensus to avoid "free" VPNs is virtually unanimous.

  14. Yes, And???? by SuperKendall · · Score: 2

    So, instead of giving Google access to your business data, you want to give it to Proton.

    Were you trying to make some kind of point in there? Because that WAS my point.

    Yes in fact I very much would vastly rather have Proton, a small little company with no ties to advertisers or other large companies or law enforcement agencies, have any of my data over Google.

    Others mentioned the end to end encryption but I'm honestly not even sure I would bother (unless it's non-optional?). It would be nice to have as an option though.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  15. not sure by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sorry, still don't trust free VPNs. Until I've read more reviews I'm fine paying for Expressvpn.

  16. Pretty good by shplopt · · Score: 1

    I tried out ProtonVPN for awhile and liked it. The Linux and Android clients are both nice, and the speed is good. It was just a little more expensive then some other services.