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Fastmail offers EU data region

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Re: Fastmail offers EU data region

#281

Post by kylecazar »

sph wrote: post #180
jeffparsons wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> just stops shy of asking Australian tech companies, like Fastmail, to build backdoors into their products so that the government can "legally access" data from them It stops just short of saying that you must do this preemptively , but is pretty clear that you must do it if they ask you to.

Why do I never hear about this ‘feature’ from American products like gmail which 99% of the HN audience is using? Isn’t USA a member of Five Eyes? I admit it is a concern, as a Fastmail user, but this discussion only seems to happen on the Fastmail threads, yet no one bats an eye if one is suggested to open a gmail account like everybody else.

Because people who are using Fastmail care about privacy and have decided not to use Gmail (probably for that reason). Fastmail presents themselves as privacy-first. So people discuss where that might not be the case.

Their homepage:

Free email isn’t really free: you’re paying with your privacy. As a paid service, we only serve you, our customer. This means we have no split loyalties, no mining of your personal data, no sharing it with third parties, and no ads, ever.

Re: Fastmail offers EU data region

#282

Post by _tk_ »

telmo wrote: post #265
_tk_ wrote: post #264

Unfortunately, even if all data lives in the European Union, as long as a company is conducting business in the US, the Cloud Act makes it possible to compel them to hand over any information. This can include making administrative personnel sign NDAs or face heavy repercussions. Conducting business in the US includes advertising to US citizens e.g through maintaining a website in English. At this point it’s unclear…

I am pretty sure that European states are already storing data that is out of reach for the US government, and I don't understand how Congress could legislate against this, short of an act of war.

There are certainly exceptions, but a lot of European Governments use Azure or Google for their office applications, including different law enforcement agencies and militaries.

Re: Fastmail offers EU data region

#283

Post by hamper653 »

abc123abc123 wrote: post #249
izacus wrote: post #171

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Remember that Chat control has gone through vote through directly elected parliament like any other legislation. The next election is in 2029. I suggest you show up instead of spreading fabrications online.

[flagged]

> People are only allowed to vote on pre-defined options that are decided entirely in private

That’s democracy in its purest form.

Re: Fastmail offers EU data region

#284

Post by DANmode »

jurgenburgen wrote: post #208
sph wrote: post #180

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why do I never hear about this ‘feature’ from American products like gmail which 99% of the HN audience is using? Isn’t USA a member of Five Eyes? I admit it is a concern, as a Fastmail user, but this discussion only seems to happen on the Fastmail threads, yet no one bats an eye if one is suggested to open a gmail account like everybody else.

> Why do I never hear about this ‘feature’ from American products like gmail which 99% of the HN audience is using? Isn’t USA a member of Five Eyes? Not sure why you haven’t heard about it but US Cloud Act is a big reason for EU companies not trusting US companies: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CLOUD_Act

PRISM, etc

Re: Fastmail offers EU data region

#285

Post by benj111 »

eastbound wrote: post #257
benj111 wrote: post #231

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>The EU is too chicken to let citizen vote every 20 years on whether we should stay in Europe, because then answer would be a big NO. Well us Brits tried that experiment and it isn't seen as a success.

It is a success. UK leaving the EU is a form of democracy. People should have the means to choose their destiny, just like the Bengladeshi or the Timor people. What is not a success is: - The EU taking retaliation against them, - The EU parties overturning members of the Leave party into the Libdem, AFTER being elected (yes, it happened for 16 members, plus the ones who didn't officially switch but stalled the Leave…

>clear LEAVE vote isn't enacted

Except the catchphrase of the day was "Brexit means Brexit", because no one bothered to define what we were voting for until we'll after the fact. There were plenty of options such as a soft Brexit or a hard Brexit. Even the hard Brexit kept us in some institutions so what we got was harder than the hardest Brexit discussed.

So in what way did we get what we voted for?

Re: Fastmail offers EU data region

#286

Post by rdm_blackhole »

carlosjobim wrote: post #248
intothemild wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wow they completely missed the ball on why people want reassurances that their data stays in the EU

They found a cheap way to please the kind of customers who care much about their activism and not much about reality. A good business decision with little risk and a potential upside. To believe your data is any better protected here or there is already unrealistic, and the admiration for the European Union for data privacy among hacker circles is unfounded. But if many people believe something false, you as a busine…

Absolutely spot on.

To think that your data is safe in the EU while the EU is actively pursuing ID checks for social media and pushing Chat control every 6 months is delusional. No, your data is not safe here. If the EU wants it, it will get it.

This cult of the EU privacy needs to stop. The EU wants the same access that the US intelligence has but for some reason, some people don't believe it and defend tooth an nail this idea that things are better here.

Just so you are aware, Europol was lobbying to have access to all text messages/emails in the EU at will without a warrant as part of Chat Control V2. Say what you want about the 5 eyes countries, this is no better.

If tomorrow the EU wants access to your data, Fastmail will give it just like it will give it to the US, to the UK or to Australia.

Re: Fastmail offers EU data region

#287

Post by tremon »

hinata08 wrote: post #121
doener wrote: post #119

As long as the company's legal headquarters are in the U.S., U.S. agencies have access to the data under the Cloud Act—and non-U.S. citizens have absolutely no legal recourse when it comes to U.S. services

their HQ is supposed to be in Melbourne, Australia They mention it only briefly in their publication. Their about page is clearer about that.

Which means that not even a European subsidiary will prevent data exfiltration by FVEY. Australia can just issue a TCN to the parent company to add a backdoor to the software used by the European subsidiary.

Re: Fastmail offers EU data region

#288

Post by tremon »

Cider9986 wrote: post #101

Jurisdiction is an outdated way of looking at things. End-to-end encryption is what actually matters. Of course, people are stupid, so it continues.

E2E encryption is meaningless for an e-mail hosting provider; they are by necessity one of the E's.

Re: Fastmail offers EU data region

#289

Post by petcat »

inigyou wrote: post #280
petcat wrote: post #278

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Kim dotcom was extradited from New Zealand, not Australia. They're different places.

They're both Five Eyes

Sure, but the point was that the US doesn't even need to exercise their capabilities under the five eyes treaty. They have a separate Cloud act agreement with Australia already which is a more direct route to get what they want.

Re: Fastmail offers EU data region

#290

Post by Lio »

fragmede wrote: post #226
Lio wrote: post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Trump just dropped the part of his lawsuit against the BBC where he claimed it damaged his business because he would have to expose what his business is. The Trump regime a way more corrupt than anything currently seen in Europe. He currently attempting to steal Greenland so he can strip it of mineral assets for fucks sack. No politician in Europe is starting wars for personal gain. Only Trump and Putin. https://www.…

> No politician in Europe is starting wars for personal gain. Isn't that that basically the history of Europe? A short French or German or English or Roman dude starting a war for personal gain?

That's the history of every country and every empire, not just Europe.

Is that the standard we're holding Trump to though?

Do you really think it's OK for him to invade other countries for personal enrichment because historic tyrants also did the same?

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