Secure email service Tutanota complains it is being blocked by AT&T in parts of the United States

Some US users of the Tutanota have been unable to access the secure email service while out and about on their smartphones since the end of January.

Other US users have no such difficulties.

So what links the users who can’t access their encrypted Tutanota mailbox over a mobile connection? They all rely upon AT&T for their internet connection.

At first, AT&T appeared to be investigating the problem.

Our team is investigating, but they need more information. Would you mind providing us with the error/bounce message that users are experiencing? Thank you!

— AT&T Help (@ATTHelp) February 5, 2020

But it still hasn’t been fixed. And that’s a big problem – both for Tutanota’s users and for Tutanota itself.

A blog post about the issue on Tutanota’s website doesn’t mince its words:

“Such outages demonstrate how much power ISPs are having over our online experience, and it is shocking. If ISPs can block access to certain websites or services, they control the Internet. It would be naive to believe that American ISPs will not use this power. Without net neutrality ISPs can – and will – ask for extra fees.”

Tutanota wants its supporters to join the fight for net neutrality.

Users of AT&T mobile who are unable to access Tutanota are advised to try using a VPN or the Tor browser to evade the block.

Just last month, ProtonMail and StartMail were in the headlines after Russia blocked access to the encrypted email services.

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Graham Cluley •   @gcluley

Graham Cluley is an award-winning keynote speaker who has given presentations around the world about cybersecurity, hackers, and online privacy. A veteran of the computer security industry since the early 1990s, he wrote the first ever version of Dr Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit for Windows, makes regular media appearances, and is the co-host of the popular "Smashing Security" podcast. Follow him on Twitter, Mastodon, Threads, Bluesky, or drop him an email.