ZEIST, the Netherlands, November 14, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --
Even beginners can take advantage of powerful, one-click PGP encryption
StartMail.com, the private email service offering revolutionary one-click PGP encryption, officially launches today at the Privacy Identity Innovation conference (pii2014) and already has over 20,000 requests for its subscription-based service.
CEO Robert Beens attributes StartMail's early success to Ed Snowden's revelations about government surveillance, along with concerns that Hotmail, Yahoo, and Gmail are scanning people's private communications for marketing purposes. "Consumers are ready for a change. They're fed up with dragnet government surveillance and the 'stalker economy,'" he said.
Snowden has advised people to protect themselves with encryption, but until now few have been able to follow his advice, given how difficult it can be to set up and use encryption. StartMail has solved this problem by empowering users to encrypt email messages with just one click. It's so easy even a beginner can use it.
"It's time people start using encryption for their everyday communications," Beens said. "So we've made it easy. StartMail is Web-based, supports IMAP, and has great privacy tools like disposable email addresses and Q&A encryption." These state-of-the-art privacy features have attracted a passionate user community, with more than 70,000 people signing up as beta testers or requesting account invitations.
StartMail is based outside of U.S. jurisdiction in Europe, where it is not directly subject to U.S. mass surveillance mandates, and the company has vowed never to cooperate with programs like PRISM. StartMail was built by the team behind StartPage.com and Ixquick.com, the world's most private search engines, which have a proven track record of protecting user privacy for nearly 10 years.
Unlike other companies, StartMail does not mine customer data for marketing revenue, and never reads people's messages. One-year StartMail subscriptions are $59.95 (€49,95), or about $5 per month and can be purchased online at http://www.startmail.com .
"Society pays a high price for those so-called 'free' services, so we've taken a different path," said Beens. "We answer to our customers, not marketers or government agents. By supporting us, our users are staking a claim in the privacy revolution. We believe everyone has a right to communicate securely. That's why privacy is not just our policy. It's our mission," said Beens.
About StartPage, Ixquick, and StartMail
StartMail.com is a private email service based in the Netherlands that makes PGP encryption accessible and easy to use. StartPage and Ixquick are private search engines offering complete anonymity, a free proxy service, and consistently high ratings on security measures. For more information, please see StartMail.com, StartPage.com, or Ixquick.com.
About pii2014
The 5th annual Privacy Identity Innovation conference, pii2014 Silicon Valley, is being held November 12-14 at the Crowne Plaza Palo Alto hotel. The conference explores where innovation is heading, what it means for the future of privacy and identity, and how to build trust in emerging technologies and business models.
Contact: StartMail Marketing and Media Relations Europe : +31-30-30 33 340
