this post was submitted on 08 Mar 2026
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196
Privacy-Focused Proton Mail Aids FBI in Uncovering ‘Stop Cop City’ Protester’s True Identity (www.gadgetreview.com)
submitted 2 days ago by schizoidman@lemmy.zip to c/technology@lemmy.world
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cross-posted from : https://lemmy.zip/post/60387297

Proton Mail provided Swiss authorities with payment data for defendtheatlantaforest@protonmail.com — the account linked to Stop Cop City protests in Atlanta. The FBI obtained this information through a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty request on January 25, 2024, identifying the activist behind the anonymous account through their credit card identifier.

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[–] floquant@lemmy.dbzer0.com 125 points 2 days ago (11 children)

Again, they did not "aid" nor "give" that information. They were legally obliged to do so. There was never a choice. This could've happened with literally any company, E2EE stops them from being forced to turn over the emails themselves, but basic account metadata (creation date, payment methods, contact details, potentially IP access logs) will always be available. What you can do is limit the amount of information a provider requires/saves (for which Proton is a good choice) or don't rely on a company at all and roll your own email server.

[–] joe@lemmy.world 29 points 2 days ago

Yeah, it's the distinction between "anonymous" and "private".

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