India, April 30 -- The Karnataka High Court has directed the Union government to block Proton Mail, which utilises end-to-end encryption to protect user data, in India.

According to a Bar and Bench report, Justice M Nagaprasanna issued the directions while hearing a petition filed by M Moser Design Associates India. The plea alleged that the email service was used to send vulgar emails about the petitioner's employees, adding that the platform's anonymity makes investigations impossible.

The court invoked Section 69A of the IT Act, 2008 and Rule 10 of the 2009 blocking rules to issue the blocking order.

The petitioner argued that Proton Mail allows users to bypass Indian surveillance and doesn't require identity verification. Citing me...