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Switzerland has been known as a privacy stronghold. Wealthy folks, companies, and crypto projects love its hands-off style.
Projects like Nym, Session, and Hopr set up shop there, joining privacy veterans like Proton and Threema.
Now, that reputation’s under threat.
A new rule could force VPNs, social networks, and messaging apps to spy on users.
Switzerland’s Golden Privacy Days May Be Numbered
Switzerland has long been a privacy champion.
Proton once praised the country’s neutrality, strong privacy laws, and independence from U.S. and EU rules.
Session’s co-founder Kee Jeffries said they picked Switzerland because of its deep respect for free speech and privacy.
But even Switzerland has to juggle safety and freedom.
The country’s surveillance law, OSCPT, controls how much the government can snoop.
In January, leaders suggested expanding it — forcing services with over 5,000 users to ID everyone and decrypt communications unless it’s end-to-end encrypted (where only the sender and receiver can read messages).
Privacy Projects Push Back Hard
The privacy community isn’t taking it quietly.
Proton’s CEO Andy Yen threatened legal action and even hinted at leaving Switzerland.
Nym’s team called on Swiss citizens to rise up and oppose the move.
Their COO, Alexis Roussel, warned the rule could “wreck an entire sector.”
Sebastian Bürgel from Hopr agreed, saying it might backfire.
If privacy services leave, regular people in Switzerland will lose out the most.
Ronald Kogens, a lawyer at MME, said it’s unclear if the government even has the legal right to make such big changes without parliament’s okay.
Will Crypto Projects Survive?
Crypto folks aren’t panicking yet.
Decentralized projects might dodge these new spying demands.
Kogens explained that if a project just provides software and doesn’t run servers, it might be safe.
Basically, the more decentralized you are, the harder it is for anyone to control you.
Just ask Tornado Cash — it’s still running despite arrests and sanctions.
Nym’s CEO said their network is so decentralized it could survive even if the whole team disappeared!
Same with Hopr — no central servers, no user data to hand over.
A New Push for Decentralization
The public can still comment on the law until May 6.
After that, Switzerland’s government will review feedback and may tweak the proposal.
Even if the law passes, Bürgel believes it could push people even harder toward crypto, privacy tools, and Web3 projects.
As he puts it, “More surveillance is bad. Everyone gets that. Web3 is about fighting that.”
(Footnotes: End-to-end encryption means only you and the person you’re talking to can read your messages — no one else, not even the app company. A decentralized project has no central owner or controller.)
