ghostBox

A tiny, privacy first, one-time payment, free (as in free speech) email service provider.

Privacy first

For your privacy, this server is encrypted, doesn't keep logs and isn't automatically backed up, but this doesn't mean you shouldn't use a VPN and take precautions.

Email E2EE is a myth

Emails, by design, have to be received unencrypted, then encrypted when they're already on the server, but most private email providers make it deliberately hard for you to find that out.

I don't: ghostBox emails aren't encrypted. The server disk is, though. But that's about it.

Freedoms and rules

ghostBox welcomes all. No account will be closed due to "controversial" content. SPAM or CSAM — although simulated, 2D, clearly stylized, non-realistic drawings are allowed as they fall under freedom of speech — are the only things that will get your account immediately deleted.

I will only share data with third parties if forced by a court of law with jurisdiction over the server.

Register a new account

You can check if your desired alias is available by sending an email to postmaster [@] ghostbox.cc. You can also request a custom domain alias, but you need to point your mail records to ghostBox.

If your desired alias is available, you can proceed and pay a €5 fee (in Monero). This is to ensure that our IP stays SPAM-free, unlike other providers'...

You'll get 256 MiB of storage. If you need more, just tell me.

I accept inbound emails from any server and domain, so you can also use a temporary email to request an account.

Login to an existing account

You can login using Roundcube or any other email client (like Thunderbird) automatically.

If it doesn't log you it automatically, you can setup POP3, IMAP, SMTP with standard ports and the hostname "mail.ghostbox.cc" manually.

Recover password

I'm sorry, but I can't recover lost passwords.

I can't verify that you're the account owner, except if we agreed on a random password reset token beforehand. If you want to talk about this, contact me.

Start fresh

Want me to delete, then re-create your account? The fastest way to do this is to send me a GDPR removal request, stating that you'd also like me to re-create your account.

Delete account

Send me a GDPR removal request from your ghostBox account and I will close down your account ASAP.

Latest news & updates

July 19, 2024 · ghostBox encountered a lot of downtime, but it should be fixed now. I changed database.

July 16, 2024 · Users weren't able to receive or send any emails for a few days. Once I noticed, I immediately restored the first (working) backup. Everything works fine now.

July 12, 2024 · The new website is now online! I will use the next few days to bring back 2FA and setup IPv6 connectivity, so there may be some downtime.

July 11, 2024 · The new email server is now online! Now it's hosted with Frantech, but the old server is still online (hosted with Skhron, a fantastic VPS provider that will be my #1 choice for small projects going forward).
I sent many emails in the two months prior to this, but if you didn't backup your emails yet, you have time until July 28th, 2024. To do so, please visit the old Roundcube installation.

February 24, 2024 · ghostBox is experiencing an increase in website traffic. The EUR to XMR conversion is currently unavailable due to rate limiting. Email deliverability is not affected.

February 16, 2024 · Spamhaus has added ghostbox.cc to their database, again. Our provider, Skhron, has already experienced this and told me that listings expire automatically, and to just wait.
Update: Issue resolved.

December 28, 2023 · It looks like ghostBox can't be accessed via Mullvad when trying to connect to our IPv4. I'm trying to work this out with their NOC team. IPv6 works fine. Also, happy new year!
Update: Issue resolved.

November 27, 2023 · 2FA is now available. Please secure your accounts by going into Roundcube > Settings > 2-Factor Authentication.

November 26, 2023 · Spamhaus flagged our domain due to a "bad neighborhood". Despite changing DNS servers multiple times, Spamhaus didn't whitelist the domain. In the end, hosting with AEZA in Finland was the reason they blacklisted the domain for, not a "bad neighborhood", though their current status is clean.
Update: Spamhaus is known to unofficially blacklist ISPs they dislike. Following this I contacted Skhron, a small VPS provider that stepped in to host ghostBox in Poland, and this resolved the issue.