- Switzerland plans to modify its surveillance law to add new types of surveillance and information collection
- The change would extend the range to VPN and secure messaging suppliers
- Consultations are now open until May 6, 2025
Switzerland plans to modify its surveillance law to develop in new types of surveillance and data collection.
The changes – which argue that experts will put people anonymity and secure encryption in danger – would widen the net of service providers impacted on virtual private networks (VPN), messaging applications and social networks, having previously touched only mobile networks and internet service providers (ISPS).
Consultations are now public and open until May 6, 2025. Addressing Techradar, NYMVPN explained how he planned to fight against him, alongside the encrypted email application Threema and Proton, the supplier behind one of the best VPNs and secure electronic email services on the market.
More data, less security
Authorities’ arguments behind the need to access more data are always the same – catch criminals and improve security. However, according to the co-founder and COO of NYM, Alexis Roussel, being forced to leave more data behind him would obtain the opposite result.
“Less online anonymity will not improve things,” he told Techradar. “For example, the application of the identification of all these small services will eventually push for leaks, more data flight and more attacks against people.”
The amendment aims to extend the number of service providers intended to include “derivative service providers”. This categorization would aim to include any online service with a turnover of $ 100 million or more than 5,000 active users.
According to the official announcement, “three types of information and two types of surveillance are also created as a result of this revision”. In simple terms, the tastes of NYMVPN and Proton VPN would be forced to modify the way they manage their encryption technology and their privacy policies concerning the securing of the anonymity of their users.
In Switzerland, the new version of the surveillance law aims to make it impossible for Proton, Threema and @ nymproject to operate in Switzerland. We are in the consultation phase. We will fight. https://t.co/bcmbxzipfcMarch 25, 2025
Given the hindsight against the doors with encryption, Switzerland seems to adopt a different approach. However, according to Roussel, it’s more a “game on words”.
“It is not a question of end-to-end encryption. They do not want to force you to reveal what is inside the communication itself, but they want to know where it is going,” explains Roussel. “They realize that the value is not in what is said but to whom you are talking to.”.
“The interest of security and privacy is not to be able to link use to the person. This is the most critical thing.” Roussel told Techradar.
What is the next step?
It is important to note that the current amendment is not subject to a parliamentary vote or a public referendum under Swiss law. However, a public consultation is now underway, so that everyone can participate.
NYM confirmed to Techradar that the team had already started to build a strategy to fight it with Proton and Threema – and they hope that more people will follow.
The plan focuses on the demonstration of the damage that these changes will have for the online security of citizens and the larger Swiss technology industry.
“NYM is still small, but Proton and Threema are really very important companies in Switzerland,” said Rousseld, stressing how the Swiss army itself uses the latter service exactly for its high level of safety well known.
“I think we have good arguments, and I think the best argument we have is to show them that they would lose in court.”
