A court in India has mandated the blocking of the encrypted email service Proton Mail nationwide.
On Tuesday, the Karnataka High Court directed this action after a legal complaint was filed by M Moser Design Associates, a company based in New Delhi. The firm alleged that its employees received emails with obscene and vulgar content via Proton Mail.
During a hearing streamed on YouTube, Justice M Nagaprasanna instructed the Indian government to block Proton Mail under the Information Technology Act 2008. This decision was influenced by the observations made during the order.
The complaint, submitted in January, requested the regulation or blocking of Proton Mail within India. The email service had reportedly refused to disclose information about the sender of the offensive emails, even after a police report.
Additional Solicitor General Aravind Kamath, representing the Indian government, noted that the government might have a limited role in resolving the issue. He suggested that criminal courts could obtain the necessary information from Swiss authorities, given the complaint.
As of the checks by TechCrunch, the block on Proton Mail has not been implemented. TechCrunch reached out to Proton Mail for comments and will provide updates accordingly.
This incident marks another legal challenge for Proton Mail in India, being the second such ruling in recent years targeting the service’s operations in the country.
Previous efforts to block Proton Mail occurred last year when Tamil Nadu’s police department sought action after the service was used for sending hoax bomb threats to local schools. The Indian IT ministry reportedly instructed internet providers to block Proton Mail, but Swiss federal authorities intervened to prevent this.
Proton Mail previously stated that blocking access would only hinder law-abiding citizens from secure communication, without stopping cybercriminals from using other services, especially if they are located outside India.
In October 2024, the Delhi High Court requested the state police and Indian government’s home ministry to investigate Proton Mail’s usage nationwide. Kamath assured the Karnataka High Court that he would review the Delhi High Court’s observations regarding Proton Mail in India.
