- Signal saw a 4200% increase in user downloads this week as WhatsApp users considered leaving the platform.
- Both Signal and WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted messaging platforms that allow users to communicate via Wi-Fi or cell data.
- But the two programs vary in the amount of user data they collect, ownership and ease of use.
- While Signal offers users more privacy, Facebook-owned WhatsApp has customizable features that make it easier to use. Signal is testing a beta version with a bit more capabilities.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Signal, the first privacy messaging app, is gaining a reputation as WhatsApp’s main competitor.
The app got a 4200% increase in user downloads this week after WhatsApp announced that users should start giving data to the parent company, Facebook.
The two messaging apps have a few things in common. Unlike normal SMS messages and others sent over a cellular network, Signal and WhatsApp use end-to-end encryption, which hides messages when someone intercepts the chat or finds it on a server. The two competing apps allow users to chat for free via Wi-Fi networks or cellular data, making it popular for international communications.
But the two programs differ significantly in ownership, views on safety and ease of use. Signal is owned by a relatively new non-profit organization and places a great deal of emphasis on security, while WhatsApp manager WhatsApp tends to be easier to use.
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Here’s an outline of the key differences between the two encrypted messaging platforms to help you decide which one to use. Facebook and Signal were not immediately available for comment.
Ownership
Who owns WhatsApp?
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook
Kim Kulish / Corbis via Getty Images
The root of some users’ frustration over WhatsApp comes from the owner of the company.
In 2014, Facebook bought WhatsApp, co-founded by Brian Acton and Jan Koum, for $ 22 billion.
Data breaches have plagued Facebook users for years. Facebook announced a major hack in 2018 that affected 50 million accounts. According to a Telegraph report, Facebook employees already knew in December 2017 of errors in the security of user accounts of the platform.
During the Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal, Facebook said up to 87 million people may have had access to their data.
Koum left Facebook in 2018 and Acton injected $ 50 million of his own money into the competitive encrypted chat program Signal.
Who owns Signal?
Signal, on the other hand, is managed by the Signal Foundation on a non-profit basis. Acton and Moxie Marlinspike, CEO of Signal, co-founded Signal Foundation in February 2018.
According to Signal Foundation’s website, Acton left after Facebook’s acquisition “due to differences around the use of customer data and targeted advertising.” The board donated $ 50 million to start the Signal Foundation, and now sits on the organization’s board.
Signal has never received VC funding or sought investments, according to Marlinspike.
“Signal’s project is basically to make technology normal, to make it look like it’s on the surface, where data is not shared with other entities,” Marlinspike told Business Insider in 2020.
Meredith Whittaker is the third board member of the Signal Foundation. She is a former Google engineer who leads the firm’s operations and now pleads on behalf of technical workers.
Safety
How secure is WhatsApp?
Facebook does not have access to chats due to end-to-end encryption, but the firm may take user data.
According to WIRED, Facebook has access to phone numbers of WhatsApp users, IP addresses, mobile network, time with the messenger, payment data, cookies and location data.
Some users chose to prevent it from accessing personal data in 2016. But WhatsApp said that if all users do not agree to share information on February 8, they will lose access to the app.
Insider’s Rob Price reported that apps from outside can detect the online activity of WhatsApp users, including who they are talking to, when they use the app and even when they are sleeping.
How Safe is Signal?
Signal says it does not receive user messages, groups, contacts or profile information. The only two information that Signal collects is how long Signal has been installed and the last date it was installed.
The company also opens all of its software, which means the public can see how the technology was manufactured, examining the code itself.
Signal has received a vow of confidence from many security experts, including Edward Snowden. Journalists from Vice and The Intercept recommend that Signal be used via WhatsApp to ensure that your messages remain private.
—Edward Snowden (@Snowden) 2 November 2015
The messenger is not perfect. Security experts have warned that a new feature that allows users to recover data using a PIN could include privacy. “The problem with this is that most people choose poor PINs. To harden them and make the system more secure, Signal has a system that uses Intel SGX enclaves on their server,” said Matthew Green, cryptographer at Johns Hopkins. , told Vice.
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User interface
How easy is WhatsApp to use?
WhatsApp appeals to its more than two billion users with its ease and flexibility to use.
The app is available on both iOS and Android devices and syncs your phone contact list automatically as users are identified by their phone numbers.
Users can form group conversations, make voice and video calls, and make free international calls over Wi-Fi. Users can share their location, documents and files with others. WhatsApp can also add a PIN to set up 2-step verification before you can access the app.
Post video and audio calls for free on WhatsApp.
WhatsApp
Insider also reported on tricks that WhatsApp users can add to make their experience seamless. Users can mark messages as unread and pin important messages in the chat, features not available on Signal.
How easy to use is Signal?
Signal has less customizable features than WhatsApp.
The app is available on iOS, Android and desktop. Users can send photos, videos, links and other files to each other. Like WhatsApp, users can configure messages and photos to disappear over time.
Users can set up audio and video calls, as well as form groups of up to 150 people.
However, the beta version of Signal has more to offer users than the standard program. The beta version provides chat rooms that administrators can designate and send out invitations to your group.