(Still, making a definitive call on the most secure e-mail service is difficult, as there are few real-world legal scenarios to examine.) So can a Swiss company provide better e-mail security and privacy than many European Union countries or the United States? Again, it’s a tough question, but after examining the relevant Swiss law and talking with Swiss lawyers and one privacy-minded Swiss e-mail provider, the answer is probably yes, but with one big caveat: user notification of surveillance is not always transparent.

(Plus, it has a special place in my heart as I spent a year in high school living there from 1997 to 1998.) The Swiss Confederation is well-known for its Alpine air, chocolates, clocks, neutrality, secrecy, and privacy-particularly in banking. But there are many strong, privacy-minded countries that sit apart, like Switzerland.

Of course, not all of Europe is created equal-28 countries are part of the European Union. In particular, German law wouldn’t offer more legal protection-and it could possibly offer less than an American provider.

Inspired by that episode over two months ago, I kicked the tires on a couple of privacy-minded e-mail providers, one based in the United States and another based in Germany. Since Snowden became a household name, Lavabit shut down under legal pressure from a US court to hand over the keys to its kingdom as a way to get at Snowden’s data. It was from that account that he ultimately divulged his secrets to American journalists. Back when he was still a National Security Agency contractor, Edward Snowden chose the privacy-minded e-mail provider Lavabit for his correspondence.

Swiss encrypted email