{"id":10006,"date":"2025-03-25T01:04:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T05:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/?p=10006"},"modified":"2025-03-30T08:44:42","modified_gmt":"2025-03-30T12:44:42","slug":"signal-messenger-privacy-simplified-with-open-source","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/?p=10006","title":{"rendered":"Signal Messenger: Privacy, Simplified with Open Source"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Messaging apps have revolutionized communication, reshaping our daily lives and relationships. It\u2019s hard to imagine a time without SMS paving the way for near-instant connectivity. Could we even fathom returning to a world where real-time communication wasn\u2019t at our fingertips?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, we have a plethora of messaging options. Platforms like Signal, Telegram, WhatsApp, iMessage, and Facebook Messenger offer diverse features to suit our preferences. Many apps boast encryption, making users assume their conversations are private and secure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But how safe are they? Cloud-hosted applications often collect metadata from our interactions. This data\u2014information about who, when, where, and how we communicate\u2014is a goldmine for advertising algorithms. It helps these companies refine their ad targeting, shaping the products and services in our feeds. While these apps may make life more convenient, it\u2019s worth asking: Are they truly looking out for your privacy\u2014or their profit margins?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Signal<\/a> is advanced end-to-end encryption built on the open-source Signal Protocol<\/a>. It ensures our conversations remain entirely secure. No one can access your messages or calls. Privacy isn\u2019t an add-on feature\u2014it\u2019s the foundation of Signal\u2019s operation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I started using Signal a half-dozen years ago when a friend suggested it. I had been looking for a secure messaging system while working on a private estate matter. Signal worked well as I messaged my partner with confidential financial information. It allowed us to send and receive confidential data that was fully encrypted across international boundaries and worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Signal\u2019s core features are encrypted messaging, voice\/video calls, disappearing messages, and group chats. It distinguishes itself from other messaging apps with its commitment to user privacy. There are no ads, no trackers, and minimal data collection. In a world where digital privacy has become paramount for journalists, activists, and anyone who values confidentiality, Signal shines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Signal\u2019s encryption is powered by the Signal Protocol, a robust cryptographic framework designed to ensure end-to-end security for messages and calls. Signal mobile clients, desktop clients, and server software are free and distributed with an AGPL v. 3 license. Signal is available on Android, iOS, macOS, Windows, and Linux.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can easily download<\/a> and install<\/a> Signal on your desktop or mobile client. Signal currently has approximately seventy million active users, and the app has been downloaded over two hundred twenty million times. Signal is owned and operated by the Signal Foundation<\/a>, a non-profit organization co-founded in 2018 by Moxie Marlinspike <\/a>and Brian Acton<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Signal provides excellent documentation<\/a> to help users get started using the application. The Signal Foundation is a 501c3 nonprofit organization. You can support<\/a> Signal and the important work it does. Developers<\/a> are welcome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When using Signal for group chats, it is essential to make sure you know the identities of everyone in your group. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Messaging apps have revolutionized communication, reshaping our daily lives and relationships. It’s hard to imagine a time without SMS paving the way for near-instant connectivity. Could we even fathom returning to a world where real-time communication wasn’t at our fingertips? Today, we have a plethora of messaging options. Platforms like Signal, Telegram, WhatsApp, iMessage, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":32,"featured_media":2816,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5,304,75],"tags":[495,737],"class_list":["post-10006","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-linux","category-privacy","category-security","tag-messaging","tag-signal"],"modified_by":"Don Watkins","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10006","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/32"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10006"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10006\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10102,"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10006\/revisions\/10102"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2816"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10006"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10006"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.both.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10006"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}