"Born Private"

16 April 2026

60s

The born identity.

Director Olivia de Camps is currently in a rich vein of form and this ad for email service Proton keeps it that way. A 60" horror film that ratchets up the tension in a way that makes you check all the doors and windows are locked, it claims that "tech companies track us from the moment we're born". Goody gumdrops, eh?

The latest source of sweet, sweet personal data is asleep in their mother's arms. As she prepares to put the baby in their cot, it becomes apparent that they're not alone. One by one, strangers appear from the shadows and mimic the cradling motion like the most cursed goal celebration of all time. If that wasn't creepy enough, an eerie lullaby fills the room like an inevitable evil.

As concern over Big Tech's unsettling desire to become part of the family continues to grow, the brand offers worried parents a sort of My First Encrypted Email Address that ensures kids are "born private". It's a consummate piece of horror-tising, but also a sombre reminder that privacy is way more of a product than a right in the modern age.

UK

Computer Software