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In the summer of 2016, WhatsApp turned on end-to-end encryption for billions of people around the world. As standard, everyone that uses the Facebook-owned messaging platform is protected against people snooping on the messages, photos and videos they send. And yes, that even means Facebook doesn’t know a whole lot about what you’re doing.
End-to-end encryption works by scrambling the messages people send – through various cryptographic methods – so that only the sender and the recipient can see what is being sent. It’s one of the most secure ways to chat online.
Since WhatsApp turned end-to-end encryption on for everyone the technology has started to become the default way people communicate. Apple’s iMessage and Signal are both end-to-end encrypted by default while Telegram, Google’s Android Messages, Zoom, Microsoft Teams and more all have modes where messages can be encrypted.
WhatsApp is the world’s largest end-to-end encrypted platform. But change is coming. From May 15, 2021, WhatsApp is asking people to agree to new terms and conditions. These changes don’t impact end-to-end encryption but introduce new ways people can interact with businesses. Since WhatsApp announced the changes at the start of 2021 they’ve been wrongly interpreted as allowing Facebook to get more of your data. But if people don’t agree they will have their account suspended. As a result, millions of people have ditched WhatsApp and are looking for alternatives.
And there are bigger changes on the horizon. Facebook is working to put its Messenger app and Instagram direct messages both on the same end-to-end encrypted infrastructure as WhatsApp. This move, which is likely to happen in 2022, will protect trillions of messages people send but also make getting away from Facebook’s vast data-tracking system even harder.
Fortunately, there are a handful of alternative messaging apps out there if you value your privacy more than convenience. Here’s our pick of the best.
1. Signal
Signal can do pretty much everything that WhatsApp can. It uses your phone’s data connection to send end-to-end encrypted messages – or voice notes, images or videos – to individuals and groups. As with WhatsApp, Signal also lets you make one-to-one voice and video calls.
The app’s end-to-end encryption means any message sent is turned into indecipherable code until it reaches the receiver's phone – removing the chance for a third-party to intercept it on the way. The encrypted messenger has also been frequently favoured by the NSA leaker Edward Snowden.
Because Signal’s underlying code is open-source, it has been scrutinised by security and privacy experts. It has largely become the web’s main encryption standard and its tech is also used by Facebook and Google within their messaging apps.
In February 2018, WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton – who left Facebook in September 2017 – announced Signal would be expanded to have its own Foundation, a nonprofit with the aim of making private communication accessible to everyone.
Signal is our recommended encrypted messenger of choice, but it you’re after a few more options, keep reading. iOS | Android
2. Telegram
Telegram is one of the most popular messaging apps outside of China – and since it was launched in August 2013 has grown to have more than 500 million people using it. Created by entrepreneur Pavel Durov, Telegram has been popular in countries such as Iran and Russia where governments have attempted to ban it several times. However, WhatsApp’s policy changes saw Telegram benefit at the start of 2021 with Durov saying 25 million new people signed up for it in just 72 hours.
Telegram is an encrypted messaging app but it is not end-to-end encrypted by default – this has led to security experts warning against using it if you want the most private experience possible. Telegram isn’t end-to-end encrypted as it works differently than some other messaging apps. There are a few different options including its “one-to-many” broadcast channels – these can be public or private and involve administrators sending out messages to everyone who subscribes to the channel. There are also groups, which can have a maximum of 200,000 members and individual chats. End-to-end encryption can be turned on for one-to-one secret chats. iOS | Android
3. Wire
Wire is also another of Snowden’s recommendations. The Switzerland-based messaging service, like all the apps listed here, is free to use but also has premium paid tiers. This is because Wire also bills itself as a “collaboration suite” that allows for conference calls and file sharing to take place.
Everything on Wire is end-to-end encrypted by default and the company says its security has also been audited with reports – albeit the most recent is from 2018 – are available on its website. One benefit of Wire is that it can work across all your devices and syncs everything that is end-to-end encrypted automatically (WhatsApp for instance only works on one device with web apps allowing it to be used elsewhere). A phone number or email is needed to register. iOS | Android
4. Wickr
Like Wire, Wickr is an app that’s slightly more aimed at businesses than individual users. It provides workspaces where people can chat securely. Primarily it’s a free service called Wickr Me, but there are also paid-for versions that help support the free version. Much like Slack, there are limits to what you can do with a free account and more people can be included on voice calls when you’re paying for membership.
However unlike Slack, everything on Wickr is end-to-end encrypted, including screen sharing, and it also has multi-factor authentication available to protect people’s logins. You can set messages to auto-delete after a set period of time. Unlike other products, you don’t need a phone number or email address to register. iOS | Android
5. Viber
Originally developed by the Israeli company Viber Media, the cross-platform messaging app was bought by the Japanese firm Rakuten in 2014. End-to-end encryption means that one-on-one messages, group messages and media sharing are only stored on individual’s devices and are not held in central Viber servers. The app is popular in Russia, where it has a reported 100 million users. iOS | Android
Updated 15.06.21, 06:00 GMT: This article was originally published on January 25, 2019 and has since been updated with more recommendations. Reporting by Matt Reynolds and Matt Burgess
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This article was originally published by WIRED UK
