A couple more thoughts on the discussions above.
1)
https://www.eccie.net/showthread.php?p=1060631142 my thoughts on possible "The Law of Unintended Consequences" from the changed law, which are outside the discussion in this thread imo so not wanting to burden this discussion with a new direction.
2) All the discussion above regarding VPNs and encrypted email are very valuable and informative. So allow me a bit more perspective to those.
All of us use some sort of basic access to the Internet, usually one that we pay for.
So, if you are not going to the public library and using its computers, you are usually either on the
'net at home on Spectrum or UVerse or another ISP (Internet Service Provider) or perhaps on your cell phone (think ATT, Sprint, Verizon, TMobile or Cricket, or, well you get the drift).
If at home, you likely are using a browser from Chrome, FireFox, Safari, or any of the several others.
What I am trying to say is, first off, your ISP or cell provider SEES everything you are trying to do from the get-go. Even if you encrypt the content of your email and use a VPN, the initial connection to the 'net is obvious and could be logged and is obviously accessible to your browser because that is how you make the connection.
So yes, the content of your proton mail sent via a VPN is encrypted and probably not vulnerable, but the feds, for example, much like your browser service, if they are looking at you directly, will know you are sending mail, may even know the mail's destination. And, if you are using an Android smart phone, the basic browser is by Chrome, which is a Google product. Safari is from Apple. FireFox is independent of any business, but it too has the same capabilities to track users, but, imo, is very resistant to government intrusions and is not U.S. based.
ijs, but to all of the above, here is a basic reality of hobbying:
-- If you have a rather low profile, you are not now directly under scrutiny.
-- If you maintain that fairly low profile, it is highly unlikely you or any of your buddies or playmates will be directly targeted.
My assumption is that the ISPs, cell companies and browser companies certainly will strongly resist any state or federal attempts to coerce disclosures absent very well founded search warrants. It is a big part of their business model.
Yes, guvmints can obviously target web sites and try to monitor traffic into and out of those sites. Essentially, that amounts initially to IP addresses. Making a giant leap from there to target individual users would require huge resources, both money and people, and would also require significant cooperation from judges issuing warrants to compel cooperation.
Think back quickly how Apple's iPhone policy is to protect the phone user from legal penetration as we saw very recently. And how the feds had to pay an outside resource hundreds of thousands of dollars to break in, or so they said.
Gonna leave it off at this point and I know many folks will have differing opinions and certainly these matters deserve deeper discussion.
But let us take reasonable actions to protect our flanks (lists of email addies is a good idea, but keep those lists safe somewhere, of course, and let us try to think rationally and calmly.
Happy Hobbhying!
