We need to talk... about the Proton ecosystem

Proton is good. But also too big. Support my independent work:   / thehatedone  
Ecosystem is a trap. It lures you in with the promise of convenience, only to lock you inside a walled garden. Like Google and Apple. They start with a good product, but then force you to use the whole suite to get the full experience. This is dangerous.

Ecosystems are concentrating all of your data and your digital life in the hands of a single entity. An entity that grows so large and powerful that it will start making compromises against your rights only to find more ways to profit or protect their business. The larger the ecosystem, the bigger data harvester it becomes. It becomes a bigger target for hackers and the more products it offers the more data it has to give to the surveillance state.

We know that the big tech does this, because their only moral value is the shareholder value. [4]
But when a private company starts quacking like a duck in the steps of the big tech, it should worry us the same way. That company is Proton. The maker of the most renowned privacy products that have always been meant as ethical alternatives to the big tech.

Today, Proton resembles more and more the ecosystems of Google and Apple than it does its noble origins of fighting the big tech. This is a problem. It’s a problem for your privacy and it’s a problem for the whole community. But you probably never of heard of this perspective, because none of this is talked about enough. There is a reason for this.

You see, most content on Proton you’ll find, is coming from sources that are sponsored or affiliated with Proton. And I know how lucrative Proton’s deals are, because Proton even tried to pay me. Of course, I refused their offer, because taking their money would incentivize me not to recommend against Proton products. I am uniquely positioned to give you a nuanced critique of Proton and how to solve this problem.

Follow me:
  / the_hatedone_  
  / thehatedone  

Sources [references available in the transcript:   / we-need-to-talk-145597302  ]

[0] https://www.theguardian.com/world/201...
[1] https://gizmodo.com/apple-iphone-anal...
[2] https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/361390...
[3] https://www.theguardian.com/world/201...
[4] https://www.nytimes.com/1970/09/13/ar...
[5] https://proton.me/mail/privacy-policy
[6]    • The Johns Hopkins Foreign Affairs Symposiu...  
[7] https://tuta.com/email-comparison
[8] https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/06/pro...
[9] https://arstechnica.com/information-t...
[10] https://cyberscoop.com/protonmail-swi...
[11] https://techcrunch.com/2025/04/29/ind...
[12]    • I talked to the makers of the MOST SECURE ...  
[13] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VPN_blo...
[14] https://www.wsj.com/tech/cybersecurit...
[15] https://proton.me/blog/protonmail-ddo...
[16] https://www.theguardian.com/technolog...
[17] https://www.scientificamerican.com/ar...
[18] https://theintercept.com/2025/09/12/p...
[19] https://redact.dev/blog/proton-mail-j...
[20] https://cyberinsider.com/proton-suspe...
[21] https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbe...
[22] https://www.pcmag.com/news/amazon-acq...
[23] https://www.theverge.com/2022/11/19/2...
[24] https://techcrunch.com/2016/08/25/wha...
[25] https://techcrunch.com/2018/09/29/fac...
[26] https://www.wsj.com/articles/whatsapp...
[27] https://www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-pri...

Credits
Title music by Karl Casey ‪@WhiteBatAudio‬
Intro music by Epidemic Sound

The footage and images featured in the video were for critical analysis, commentary and parody, which are protected under the Fair Use laws of the United States Copyright act of 1976.