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submitted 23 hours ago* (last edited 22 hours ago) by 9488fcea02a9@sh.itjust.works to c/protonprivacy@lemmy.world

There seems to be a lot of confusion here about the ownership structure of Proton.... "the CEO is beholden to shareholders!!!", etc...

Proton is not a publicly traded company... The largest shareholder is the non-profit whose mission is as follows:

Proton was created to serve the world, and the non-profit Proton Foundation ensures that this can never change. As Proton’s primary shareholder, the foundation exercises its control to ensure that Proton does not deviate from our mission to build a better internet that serves the interests of all of society. Our legally binding purpose is to further the advancement of privacy, freedom, and democracy around the world.

https://proton.me/foundation

please contact the Board of Trustees and ask for the removal of the CEO and CTO

mailto: foundation@proton.me

At least one of the Board members is on Mastodon

Tim Berners-Lee: https://w3c.social/@timbl (yes, THAT guy... the inventor or the mother-flipping ~~internets~~ world wide web)

Email alternatives are incredibly hard to build... it's not like forking a software repo if the devs go off the deep end. Proton is worth trying to save if the alternatives are going back to google or switching to some other small time player who is equally suceptible to having a CEO ruin everything without the governance structure to make changes like Proton (in theory) has.

Let's at least try

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[-] akilou@sh.itjust.works 9 points 16 hours ago

Already did. Here's what I wrote, feel free to use it for inspiration.

Hi Proton Foundation Team,

I’ve been a Proton customer since 2022 on the Unlimited plan and the free tier for some years before that. I’m writing because I really believe in your mission, people before profits, and I want to stay a customer. But I’m getting pretty worried about what’s going on internally, specifically regarding Andy Yen's leadership.

Recent reporting ([the 404 Media piece](https://www.404media.co/manifestos-fear-and-loser-thinking-inside-protons-ai-reckoning/ "the 404 Media piece")) describes a pretty toxic environment: employees being called "losers," tracking software to monitor AI usage, and pressure to use AI even when security teams have concerns. If the culture is punishing people for raising red flags, that feels like a huge risk for a privacy company.

Beyond the immediate morale issues, I’m concerned this atmosphere will repel top engineering and product management talent. The best security experts and PMs won’t stick around where they’re treated poorly or where their warnings are ignored. And if there’s a casual attitude toward essential safeguards like penetration testing just to move faster on AI, that’s a direct threat to the product’s integrity.

This is exactly why your oversight role exists. As the non-profit shareholder tasked with ensuring Proton never deviates from its mission, I need to know you’re stepping in. Can you clarify how you’re handling these concerns? Specifically:

* How is AI-generated code being reviewed for security if engineers are afraid to speak up?

* What’s the Foundation doing about the reported bullying and fear tactics?

* Are you monitoring how this culture affects talent retention and security rigor?

I’m not looking for a PR spin, just some transparency. I trust the mission, but I’m starting to doubt the execution.

Thanks for listening,

[-] 9488fcea02a9@sh.itjust.works 1 points 9 hours ago

thank you for your help!

i didn't even bother asking questions....

ensure that Proton does not deviate from our mission...

i just listed all the ways that shouting down engineers, shipping things quickly without QA, and over-reliance on AI are clearly detrimental to a mission of privacy, freedom, trust, and community.... it's not even up for debate at this point. remove the CEO and CTO and put someone in charge who will restore trust and accountability.

this post was submitted on 01 Nov 2026
132 points (98.5% liked)

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