by The Commentator on 10 July 2013 14:13

As if America's problems with major powers were not enough over revelations from Edward Snowden that the US has been spying on friendly governments in Europe (and not so friendly ones elsewhere), the co-founder of Pirate Bay has told Swedish media Wednesday that he is launching a "surveillance proof" messenger service to confound state spying agencies.

"We thought that a new messenger service was needed in view of the surveillance scandals that have broken recently," co-founder Linus Olsson was quoted by The Local, a major Swedish online outlet, as saying on Wednesday.

The Local added, "that fundraising is progressing well, with almost $27,000 of the $100,000 target raised by Wednesday morning.

"But it isn't just a question of raising the money it is also a question of gauging interest. We want people to use it as well.

"The development work for the new app is progressing in the meantime although the firm was unable to put a date on when users will be able to make use of the tool. Olsson furthermore warned that despite their best efforts, protection from prying eyes will never be fully guaranteed.

"You can never be 100 percent certain, but we will try. It has to be user-friendly as well. I want it to be simple enough for my parents to use," Olsson said.

The domain will be located in Iceland, which is widely considered to be a highly supportive of free-speech internet services.

"We like Iceland. They have a mentality that suits the project and (the domain) fits into the name as well," Linus Olsson was quoted as saying.