A new feature developed by Proton Mail allows users to verify email addresses using blockchain technology.
Swiss end-to-end email provider focused on encryption Proton Mail is testing a new blockchain-based feature that allows users to verify email addresses.
In an interview with Fortune, Proton CEO Andy Yen emphasized that the new Key Transparency product has nothing to do with crypto and is essentially a “blockchain in a very pure form.” The idea is to solve the ‘man-in-the-middle’ attack, a type of cyber attack in which the attacker intercepts and monitors the entire conversation.
“Maybe it’s the NSA [National Security Agency] who has created a fake public key associated with you, and I am somehow tricked into encrypting data with that public key. For the verification to be reliable, it must be public and immutable.”
Andy Yen, CEO of Proton
The feature automatically compares users’ public keys – generated as soon as they create an email on Proton – with the intended recipients to ensure emails go to the correct destination.
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The feature is in beta mode on Proton’s private blockchain network at the time of writing. However, Yen did not rule out moving the product to a public blockchain (e.g. Ethereum) once the team is sure the product is ready. Proton’s CEO did not provide a timetable for the product launch.
In late 2022, Yen publicly expressed his dilemma over the fate of cryptocurrencies. In an interview with Forbes, Yen revealed his uncertainty about Proton’s crypto reserves, saying he was unsure whether the company should continue to hold crypto on its balance sheet.
Proton Mail has held Bitcoin (BTC) on its balance sheet since 2017 and continues to accept crypto as a means of payment.
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