Lavabit is (or rather was) an email service that took its users' privacy seriously. And for that reason it appears the service has been forced to shut down. From
owner Ladar Levison:
My Fellow Users,
I have been forced to make a difficult decision: to become
complicit in crimes against the American people or walk away from nearly
ten years of hard work by shutting down Lavabit. After significant soul
searching, I have decided to suspend operations. I wish that I could
legally share with you the events that led to my decision. I cannot. I
feel you deserve to know what’s going on--the first amendment is
supposed to guarantee me the freedom to speak out in situations like
this. Unfortunately, Congress has passed laws that say otherwise. As
things currently stand, I cannot share my experiences over the last six
weeks, even though I have twice made the appropriate requests.
What’s going to happen now? We’ve already started preparing the
paperwork needed to continue to fight for the Constitution in the Fourth
Circuit Court of Appeals. A favorable decision would allow me resurrect
Lavabit as an American company.
This experience has taught me one very important lesson: without
congressional action or a strong judicial precedent, I would _strongly_
recommend against anyone trusting their private data to a company with
physical ties to the United States.
Sincerely,
Ladar Levison
Owner and Operator, Lavabit LLC
Defending the constitution is expensive! Help us by donating to the Lavabit Legal Defense Fund here.
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