Proton’s Lumo AI chatbot: not end-to-end encrypted, not open source
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It can't be that stupid, you must be prompting it wrong
Eat shit
Edit: is that a tag or something for the website? I still don't like the sentiment (or the chatbot) but if it's not something that came from Proton then I take back some of my vitriol
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It can't be that stupid, you must be prompting it wrong
Eat shit
Edit: is that a tag or something for the website? I still don't like the sentiment (or the chatbot) but if it's not something that came from Proton then I take back some of my vitriol
This is an anti-AI blog, that tagline is a joke.
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It can't be that stupid, you must be prompting it wrong
Eat shit
Edit: is that a tag or something for the website? I still don't like the sentiment (or the chatbot) but if it's not something that came from Proton then I take back some of my vitriol
He’s being sarcastic
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He’s being sarcastic
Yeah I got there eventually
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This is an anti-AI blog, that tagline is a joke.
I'm not familiar with this blog, so I can't comment on their general stance, but this particular article seems balanced and fair. They point out questionable implementation practices on Proton's side rather than criticising the AI itself.
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The worst part is that once again, proton is trying to convince its users that it's more secure than it really is. You have to wonder what else they are lying or deceiving about.
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For a critical blog, the first few paragraphs sound a lot like they're shilling for Proton.
I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be impressed by the author's witty wording, but "the cool trick they do" is - full encryption.
Moving on.
But that’s misleading. The actual large language model is not open. The code for Proton’s bit of Lumo is not open source. The only open source bit that Proton’s made available is just some of Proton’s controls for the LLM. [GitHub]
In the single most damning thing I can say about Proton in 2025, the Proton GitHub repository has a “cursorrules” file. They’re vibe-coding their public systems. Much secure!
oof.
Over the years I've heard many people claim that proton's servers being in Switzerland is more secure than other EU countries - well there's also this now:
Proton is moving its servers out of Switzerland to another country in the EU they haven’t specified. The Lumo announcement is the first that Proton’s mentioned this.
No company is safe from enshittification - always look for, and base your choices on, the legally binding stuff, before you commit. Be wary of weasel wording. And always, always be ready to move* on when the enshittification starts despite your caution.
* regarding email, there's redirection services a.k.a. eternal email addresses - in some cases run by venerable non-profits.
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For a critical blog, the first few paragraphs sound a lot like they're shilling for Proton.
I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be impressed by the author's witty wording, but "the cool trick they do" is - full encryption.
Moving on.
But that’s misleading. The actual large language model is not open. The code for Proton’s bit of Lumo is not open source. The only open source bit that Proton’s made available is just some of Proton’s controls for the LLM. [GitHub]
In the single most damning thing I can say about Proton in 2025, the Proton GitHub repository has a “cursorrules” file. They’re vibe-coding their public systems. Much secure!
oof.
Over the years I've heard many people claim that proton's servers being in Switzerland is more secure than other EU countries - well there's also this now:
Proton is moving its servers out of Switzerland to another country in the EU they haven’t specified. The Lumo announcement is the first that Proton’s mentioned this.
No company is safe from enshittification - always look for, and base your choices on, the legally binding stuff, before you commit. Be wary of weasel wording. And always, always be ready to move* on when the enshittification starts despite your caution.
* regarding email, there's redirection services a.k.a. eternal email addresses - in some cases run by venerable non-profits.
Moving the servers out of Switzerland may bein response to the proposed? regulations allowing more access to data of foreigners or something like that.
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For a critical blog, the first few paragraphs sound a lot like they're shilling for Proton.
I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be impressed by the author's witty wording, but "the cool trick they do" is - full encryption.
Moving on.
But that’s misleading. The actual large language model is not open. The code for Proton’s bit of Lumo is not open source. The only open source bit that Proton’s made available is just some of Proton’s controls for the LLM. [GitHub]
In the single most damning thing I can say about Proton in 2025, the Proton GitHub repository has a “cursorrules” file. They’re vibe-coding their public systems. Much secure!
oof.
Over the years I've heard many people claim that proton's servers being in Switzerland is more secure than other EU countries - well there's also this now:
Proton is moving its servers out of Switzerland to another country in the EU they haven’t specified. The Lumo announcement is the first that Proton’s mentioned this.
No company is safe from enshittification - always look for, and base your choices on, the legally binding stuff, before you commit. Be wary of weasel wording. And always, always be ready to move* on when the enshittification starts despite your caution.
* regarding email, there's redirection services a.k.a. eternal email addresses - in some cases run by venerable non-profits.
Regarding the fact that proton stops hosting in Switzerland :
I thought it was because of new laws in Switzerland and that they hzf not much of a choice ? -
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How much longer until the AI bubbles pops? I'm tired of this.
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The worst part is that once again, proton is trying to convince its users that it's more secure than it really is. You have to wonder what else they are lying or deceiving about.
Mullvad FTW
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Mullvad FTW
Yes, indeed. Even so, just because there is a workaround, we should not ignore the issue (governments descending into fascism).
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Yes, indeed. Even so, just because there is a workaround, we should not ignore the issue (governments descending into fascism).
Very true
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The worst part is that once again, proton is trying to convince its users that it's more secure than it really is. You have to wonder what else they are lying or deceiving about.
Both your take, and the author, seem to not understand how LLMs work. At all.
At some point, yes, an LLM model has to process clear text tokens. There's no getting around that. Anyone who creates an LLM that can process 30 billion parameters while encrypted will become an overnight billionaire from military contracts alone. If you want absolute privacy, process locally. Lumo has limitations, but goes farther than duck.ai at respecting privacy. Your threat model and equipment mean YOU make a decision for YOUR needs. This is an option. This is not trying to be one size fits all. You don't HAVE to use it. It's not being forced down your throat like Gemini or CoPilot.
And their LLM. - it's Mistral, OpenHands and OLMO, all open source. It's in their documentation. So this article is straight up lies about that. Like.... Did Google write this article? It's simply propaganda.
Also, Proton does have some circumstances where it lets you decrypt your own email locally. Otherwise it's basically impossible to search your email for text in the email body. They already had that as an option, and if users want AI assistants, that's obviously their bridge. But it's not a default setup. It's an option you have to set up. It's not for everyone. Some users want that. It's not forced on everyone. Chill TF out.
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For a critical blog, the first few paragraphs sound a lot like they're shilling for Proton.
I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be impressed by the author's witty wording, but "the cool trick they do" is - full encryption.
Moving on.
But that’s misleading. The actual large language model is not open. The code for Proton’s bit of Lumo is not open source. The only open source bit that Proton’s made available is just some of Proton’s controls for the LLM. [GitHub]
In the single most damning thing I can say about Proton in 2025, the Proton GitHub repository has a “cursorrules” file. They’re vibe-coding their public systems. Much secure!
oof.
Over the years I've heard many people claim that proton's servers being in Switzerland is more secure than other EU countries - well there's also this now:
Proton is moving its servers out of Switzerland to another country in the EU they haven’t specified. The Lumo announcement is the first that Proton’s mentioned this.
No company is safe from enshittification - always look for, and base your choices on, the legally binding stuff, before you commit. Be wary of weasel wording. And always, always be ready to move* on when the enshittification starts despite your caution.
* regarding email, there's redirection services a.k.a. eternal email addresses - in some cases run by venerable non-profits.
Really? This article reads like it's AI slop reproducing Proton copy then pivoting to undermine them with straight up incorrect info.
You know how Microsoft manages to make LibreOffice pulls errors on Windows 11? You really didn't stop to think that Google might contract out some slop farms to shit on Proton?
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Both your take, and the author, seem to not understand how LLMs work. At all.
At some point, yes, an LLM model has to process clear text tokens. There's no getting around that. Anyone who creates an LLM that can process 30 billion parameters while encrypted will become an overnight billionaire from military contracts alone. If you want absolute privacy, process locally. Lumo has limitations, but goes farther than duck.ai at respecting privacy. Your threat model and equipment mean YOU make a decision for YOUR needs. This is an option. This is not trying to be one size fits all. You don't HAVE to use it. It's not being forced down your throat like Gemini or CoPilot.
And their LLM. - it's Mistral, OpenHands and OLMO, all open source. It's in their documentation. So this article is straight up lies about that. Like.... Did Google write this article? It's simply propaganda.
Also, Proton does have some circumstances where it lets you decrypt your own email locally. Otherwise it's basically impossible to search your email for text in the email body. They already had that as an option, and if users want AI assistants, that's obviously their bridge. But it's not a default setup. It's an option you have to set up. It's not for everyone. Some users want that. It's not forced on everyone. Chill TF out.
Their AI is not local, so adding it to your email means breaking e2ee. That's to some extent fine. You can make an informed decision about it.
But proton is not putting warning labels on this. They are trying to confuse people into thinking it is the same security as their e2ee mails. Just look at the "zero trust" bullshit on protons own page.
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This was it for me, cancelled my account. Fuck this Andy moron
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How much longer until the AI bubbles pops? I'm tired of this.
depends on what and with whom. based on my current jobs with smaller companies and start ups? soon. they can't afford the tech debt they've brought onto themselves. big companies? who knows.
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Who Proton???? Nooo come on… who could ever seen this coming?
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For a critical blog, the first few paragraphs sound a lot like they're shilling for Proton.
I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be impressed by the author's witty wording, but "the cool trick they do" is - full encryption.
Moving on.
But that’s misleading. The actual large language model is not open. The code for Proton’s bit of Lumo is not open source. The only open source bit that Proton’s made available is just some of Proton’s controls for the LLM. [GitHub]
In the single most damning thing I can say about Proton in 2025, the Proton GitHub repository has a “cursorrules” file. They’re vibe-coding their public systems. Much secure!
oof.
Over the years I've heard many people claim that proton's servers being in Switzerland is more secure than other EU countries - well there's also this now:
Proton is moving its servers out of Switzerland to another country in the EU they haven’t specified. The Lumo announcement is the first that Proton’s mentioned this.
No company is safe from enshittification - always look for, and base your choices on, the legally binding stuff, before you commit. Be wary of weasel wording. And always, always be ready to move* on when the enshittification starts despite your caution.
* regarding email, there's redirection services a.k.a. eternal email addresses - in some cases run by venerable non-profits.
Over the years I've heard many people claim that proton's servers being in Switzerland is more secure than other EU countries
Things change. They are doing it because Switzerland is proposing legislation that would definitely make that claim untrue.
Europe is no paradise, especially certain countries, but it still makes sense.From the lumo announcement:
Lumo represents one of many investments Proton will be making before the end of the decade to ensure that Europe stays strong, independent, and technologically sovereign. Because of legal uncertainty around Swiss government proposals(new window) to introduce mass surveillance — proposals that have been outlawed in the EU — Proton is moving most of its physical infrastructure out of Switzerland. Lumo will be the first product to move.
This shift represents an investment of over €100 million into the EU proper. While we do not give up the fight for privacy in Switzerland (and will continue to fight proposals that we believe will be extremely damaging to the Swiss economy), Proton is also embracing Europe and helping to develop a sovereign EuroStack(new window) for the future of our home continent. Lumo is European, and proudly so, and here to serve everybody who cares about privacy and security worldwide.
