Proton VPN

Swiss privacy-first VPN with open-source apps and NetShield ad blocking

Giskard

Open-source and enterprise AI red-teaming platform for LLM security and quality testing

Proton VPN

Excellent

22/25

Giskard

Excellent

23/25

Score Breakdown

DimensionProton VPNGiskard

Data Residency

Where is your data stored and processed?

Proton VPN: Incorporated and headquartered in Switzerland, outside EU and Five/Nine/Fourteen Eyes. Proton-owned infrastructure in Switzerland and EU. Strongest possible jurisdictional privacy posture for a VPN provider.

Giskard: EU-incorporated vendor offering EU data residency with SaaS, private-cloud, and full on-premise deployment, plus an explicitly EU-sovereign guardrail product (Guards). Data isolation is a core selling point for regulated customers.

5/5

Incorporated and headquartered in Switzerland, outside EU and Five/Nine/Fourteen Eyes. Proton-owned infrastructure in Switzerland and EU. Strongest possible jurisdictional privacy posture for a VPN provider.

5/5

EU-incorporated vendor offering EU data residency with SaaS, private-cloud, and full on-premise deployment, plus an explicitly EU-sovereign guardrail product (Guards). Data isolation is a core selling point for regulated customers.

Legal Jurisdiction

Which laws govern the company and your data?

Proton VPN: Swiss jurisdiction under the Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP). Swiss courts have a strong track record of protecting user privacy from foreign data requests. Publishes annual Transparency Report.

Giskard: Incorporated in France as Giskard SAS with no US parent. Subject to French and EU law and GDPR directly; not exposed to the US CLOUD Act for EU-hosted deployments.

5/5

Swiss jurisdiction under the Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP). Swiss courts have a strong track record of protecting user privacy from foreign data requests. Publishes annual Transparency Report.

5/5

Incorporated in France as Giskard SAS with no US parent. Subject to French and EU law and GDPR directly; not exposed to the US CLOUD Act for EU-hosted deployments.

Data Retention & Training

Is your data used for model training?

Proton VPN: Strict no-logs policy: no IP addresses, connection timestamps, session duration, or traffic content retained. RAM-only servers in Secure Core configuration. Independently audited open-source client code.

Giskard: States a zero-training policy on customer data with IP protection, and offers data isolation plus enterprise retention controls via private-cloud/on-premise deployment. DPA available as an EU SOC 2 / HIPAA vendor.

5/5

Strict no-logs policy: no IP addresses, connection timestamps, session duration, or traffic content retained. RAM-only servers in Secure Core configuration. Independently audited open-source client code.

5/5

States a zero-training policy on customer data with IP protection, and offers data isolation plus enterprise retention controls via private-cloud/on-premise deployment. DPA available as an EU SOC 2 / HIPAA vendor.

Certifications

ISO 27001, SOC 2, Cyber Essentials, etc.

Proton VPN: ISO 27001 certified. All client applications open source and independently audited. Lacks SOC 2 Type II; however, open-source audit transparency partially compensates for formal certification gaps.

Giskard: SOC 2 Type II and HIPAA compliance are publicly stated. ISO 27001 was not found in public sources, which would strengthen the posture; certifications scored on the confirmed SOC 2 Type II.

3/5

ISO 27001 certified. All client applications open source and independently audited. Lacks SOC 2 Type II; however, open-source audit transparency partially compensates for formal certification gaps.

3/5

SOC 2 Type II and HIPAA compliance are publicly stated. ISO 27001 was not found in public sources, which would strengthen the posture; certifications scored on the confirmed SOC 2 Type II.

Regulatory Fit

Suitability for regulated industries and professional services

Proton VPN: Excellent fit for privacy-sensitive organisations and journalists. Swiss jurisdiction makes it particularly suitable for legal, financial, and human rights organisations requiring protection from government data requests.

Giskard: Purpose-built for AI assurance in regulated EU industries, with named financial-sector customers (AXA, BNP Paribas) and EU-sovereign deployment aligned to the EU AI Act's testing and risk-management expectations.

4/5

Excellent fit for privacy-sensitive organisations and journalists. Swiss jurisdiction makes it particularly suitable for legal, financial, and human rights organisations requiring protection from government data requests.

5/5

Purpose-built for AI assurance in regulated EU industries, with named financial-sector customers (AXA, BNP Paribas) and EU-sovereign deployment aligned to the EU AI Act's testing and risk-management expectations.

Total Score

22/25

23/25

Best For

Proton VPN

Best for EU-headquartered organisations needing maximum data sovereignty; regulated industries (CNIL, BaFin); privacy-conscious teams who need strong data retention controls; organisations that need self-hosted or on-premise deployment; teams on a tight budget.

Giskard

Best for EU-headquartered organisations needing maximum data sovereignty; privacy-conscious teams who need strong data retention controls; organisations that need self-hosted or on-premise deployment; teams on a tight budget.

Detailed Comparison

Giskard vs Proton VPN: Trust & Compliance Comparison

Giskard (Giskard, FR) scores 23/25 overall with a Gold (Excellent) trust badge. Open-source and enterprise AI red-teaming platform for LLM security and quality testing. Proton VPN (Proton AG, CH) scores 22/25 with a Gold (Excellent) trust badge. Swiss privacy-first VPN with open-source apps and NetShield ad blocking.

Dimension-by-Dimension Breakdown

#### Data Residency

Both score equally at 5/5.

●Giskard (5/5): EU-incorporated vendor offering EU data residency with SaaS, private-cloud, and full on-premise deployment, plus an explicitly EU-sovereign guardrail product (Guards). Data isolation is a core selling point for regulated customers.

●Proton VPN (5/5): Incorporated and headquartered in Switzerland, outside EU and Five/Nine/Fourteen Eyes. Proton-owned infrastructure in Switzerland and EU. Strongest possible jurisdictional privacy posture for a VPN provider.

#### Legal Jurisdiction

Both score equally at 5/5.

●Giskard (5/5): Incorporated in France as Giskard SAS with no US parent. Subject to French and EU law and GDPR directly; not exposed to the US CLOUD Act for EU-hosted deployments.

●Proton VPN (5/5): Swiss jurisdiction under the Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP). Swiss courts have a strong track record of protecting user privacy from foreign data requests. Publishes annual Transparency Report.

#### Data Retention & Training

Both score equally at 5/5.

●Giskard (5/5): States a zero-training policy on customer data with IP protection, and offers data isolation plus enterprise retention controls via private-cloud/on-premise deployment. DPA available as an EU SOC 2 / HIPAA vendor.

●Proton VPN (5/5): Strict no-logs policy: no IP addresses, connection timestamps, session duration, or traffic content retained. RAM-only servers in Secure Core configuration. Independently audited open-source client code.

#### Certifications

Both score equally at 3/5.

●Giskard (3/5): SOC 2 Type II and HIPAA compliance are publicly stated. ISO 27001 was not found in public sources, which would strengthen the posture; certifications scored on the confirmed SOC 2 Type II.

●Proton VPN (3/5): ISO 27001 certified. All client applications open source and independently audited. Lacks SOC 2 Type II; however, open-source audit transparency partially compensates for formal certification gaps.

#### Regulatory Fit

Giskard leads with 5/5 vs 4/5.

●Giskard (5/5): Purpose-built for AI assurance in regulated EU industries, with named financial-sector customers (AXA, BNP Paribas) and EU-sovereign deployment aligned to the EU AI Act's testing and risk-management expectations.

●Proton VPN (4/5): Excellent fit for privacy-sensitive organisations and journalists. Swiss jurisdiction makes it particularly suitable for legal, financial, and human rights organisations requiring protection from government data requests.

Certifications at a Glance

Certification	Giskard	Proton VPN
HIPAA	Yes	No
ISO 27001	No	Yes
SOC 2 Type II	Yes	No

Overall Verdict

Giskard and Proton VPN are closely matched on trust and compliance, with scores of 23/25 and 22/25 respectively. The right choice depends on your specific regulatory requirements and existing technology stack.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better for EU compliance, Proton VPN or Giskard?

Proton VPN has a TrustKit score of 22/25 while Giskard scores 23/25. Giskard currently rates higher across data residency, legal jurisdiction, data retention, certifications, and regulatory fit.

How do Proton VPN and Giskard compare on data residency?

Proton VPN scores 5/5 for data residency (Incorporated and headquartered in Switzerland, outside EU and Five/Nine/Fourteen Eyes. Proton-owned infrastructure in Switzerland and EU. Strongest possible jurisdictional privacy posture for a VPN provider.), while Giskard scores 5/5 (EU-incorporated vendor offering EU data residency with SaaS, private-cloud, and full on-premise deployment, plus an explicitly EU-sovereign guardrail product (Guards). Data isolation is a core selling point for regulated customers.).

Are Proton VPN and Giskard GDPR compliant?

Both tools are assessed across five compliance dimensions. Proton VPN has a regulatory fit score of 4/5 and Giskard scores 5/5. Check the full comparison above for a detailed breakdown.

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