Privacy and access to internet are part of freedom: Proton
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Geneva: Internet Privacy company and VPN services provider Proton say that privacy and internet access are part of freedom. The company says that it sees a spike in sign-ups for its services at places where democracy and freedom are under attack, Agence France-Presse reported.
Proton claims that it is able to locate attacks on democracy in a country before it becomes news. The company says that they detect it simply with a spike in demand for their services.
It said that when Russia blocked the access of independent news inside it after it initiated the Ukraine invasion last February, there was a 9,000 per cent increase in demand for Proton’s VPN (Virtual Private Networks) service just in a few days.
In October last, a similar spike happened after Iran authorities imposed restrictions on Internet access following the death of journalist Mahsa Amini. Amini had died in police custody after she was detained for not wearing a hijab. Proton said that then the demand for its VPN services went tenfold in Iran.
The company claimed that firms like Protons must keep providing their services in places like Russia or Iran. Such companies must operate even if they incur financial losses since freedom to access the internet is essential.
The company said, “If we abandon these markets, actually the consequences are quite severe,” AFP quoted.
However, Proton is more concerned about “corporate surveillance”, such as what does by Google and Facebook. According to the company, what NSA might have about a commoner is “only a drop in the bucket compared to what Google and Facebook have”, AFP quotes.
Proton claims that while Google and Facebook provide services for free, they sell user data to third parties, while Proton provides services for a subscription.