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Is there a market for a secure messaging app (similar to Signal) that does not rely on personally identifying information (phone numbers and emails) or is that

by _wldu 5y ago

Is there a market for a secure messaging app (similar to Signal) that does not rely on personally identifying information (phone numbers and emails) or is that too fringe?

reacharavindh 5y ago
This is what I wish Signal was. A simple secure messenger that works with a username and not tied to an identity like phone number :-( Like HN...... Now that I'd happily pay for.
- _wldu 5y ago
  Yep. Me too. The network meta-data is always present (IP, src, dst, date, time, etc.). Law enforcement could use that to find criminal actors committing crimes on the app. But having such an app would allow law abiding individuals to communicate privately and securely without disclosing their personally identifying data to anyone.
- 7steps2much 5y ago
  Have you had a look at Threema?
323 5y ago
There was once Tor Messenger, but now it's dead, so I guess there is not a market for such a thing: https://blog.torproject.org/sunsetting-tor-messenger/ https://blog.torproject.org/sunsetting-tor-messenger/
agentdrtran 5y ago
Matrix is probably the closet alternative but it's harder to use than Signal (lost your password? say goodbye to your messages!).
- _wldu 5y ago
  Yes. Without an email or phone number there would be no way to do an account recovery, but perhaps some other clever solutions (allow some of your contacts to reset for you, or sign a message with your key, etc.) may be an option.
- pessimizer 5y ago
  That's a feature. I don't want my account to be recoverable without my password.
  - agentdrtran 5y ago
    I understand that use case, but for most people that's horrible as they don't take care of their passwords very well.
7steps2much 5y ago
Threema is around and well, though it's userbase is relatively small.
unraveller 5y ago
https://getsession.org https://getsession.org is a signal clone without the number requirement, just uses a session id. E2EE voice & video conferencing is available in the beta coming in the next release

by _wldu 5y ago

Is there a market for a secure messaging app (similar to Signal) that does not rely on personally identifying information (phone numbers and emails) or is that too fringe?

reacharavindh 5y ago

This is what I wish Signal was. A simple secure messenger that works with a username and not tied to an identity like phone number :-( Like HN...... Now that I'd happily pay for.

_wldu 5y ago
Yep. Me too. The network meta-data is always present (IP, src, dst, date, time, etc.). Law enforcement could use that to find criminal actors committing crimes on the app. But having such an app would allow law abiding individuals to communicate privately and securely without disclosing their personally identifying data to anyone.
7steps2much 5y ago
Have you had a look at Threema?

323 5y ago

There was once Tor Messenger, but now it's dead, so I guess there is not a market for such a thing: https://blog.torproject.org/sunsetting-tor-messenger/ https://blog.torproject.org/sunsetting-tor-messenger/

agentdrtran 5y ago

Matrix is probably the closet alternative but it's harder to use than Signal (lost your password? say goodbye to your messages!).

_wldu 5y ago
Yes. Without an email or phone number there would be no way to do an account recovery, but perhaps some other clever solutions (allow some of your contacts to reset for you, or sign a message with your key, etc.) may be an option.
pessimizer 5y ago
That's a feature. I don't want my account to be recoverable without my password.
- agentdrtran 5y ago
  I understand that use case, but for most people that's horrible as they don't take care of their passwords very well.

7steps2much 5y ago

Threema is around and well, though it's userbase is relatively small.

unraveller 5y ago

https://getsession.org https://getsession.org is a signal clone without the number requirement, just uses a session id. E2EE voice & video conferencing is available in the beta coming in the next release