In the wake of the riots last week at the U.S. Capitol that killed several people and caused outrage across the country, the messaging app Signal has grown in popularity as users search for alternatives to social networking.
Signal was built by Swedish developer Signal Messenger LLC and has risen to the top of the Apple App Store and to the top of the Google Play Store, but it’s not like Twitter or Facebook. Instead, it’s a secure messaging application, similar to WhatsApp or Apple’s iMessage.
With the signal, users can send texts, videos, audio or picture messages with end-to-end encryption, just like with a regular SMS. “Signal’s advanced privacy protection technology is always enabled, so you can focus on sharing the moments that matter with the people who matter to you,” the app writes in its description.
Signal app displayed on iPhone (credit: Signal.org blog)
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The message is effectively scrambled immediately after it is sent, so that Signal and no one else can read the message. Only the recipient can see the unencrypted message.
In addition, Signal, which according to the site does not store user data, also offers a number of other privacy features, including face blur, blank notification pop-ups and instant messaging. Signal’s message is already stored locally on the device.
However, there is a restriction on the use of Signal to send encrypted messages. The end-to-end encryption can be restricted if one of the parties does not use Signal, and therefore a wider acceptance is one of the biggest issues in the app.
It gained in popularity after people like Edward Snowden tweeted about it in 2015, with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk recently urging his followers to use the service while taking a chance on Facebook at the same time.
Musk also noted that he has donated money to Signal in the past and will donate more in the future.
Musk and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg have talked about a number of topics over the years, including artificial intelligence. In 2018, Musk pulled SpaceX and Tesla’s Facebook pages following the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey tweeted a heart-wrenching emoji on Sunday that Signal had risen to the top of the App Store, sparking criticism of Parler CEO John Matze.
“Yes, we were number one until the hoax news crowd on Twitter and your rival friends chased us,” Matze wrote on his social network. Parler has since been removed from both the App Store and the Play Store and has lost a number of business partners, including Amazon Web Services, which offered the app, among others, its attorneys.
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As Signal continues to increase in popularity, it took a few brackets to verify new users. Late last week, the messaging app tweeted that verification codes were delayed “because so many people are currently trying to join Signal.”
By Saturday, the problem had been rectified.
Signal tweeted on Sunday that it was breaking traffic records, referring to people who do not like Facebook’s new terms.
Signal has been downloaded more than 32 million times since June 2020, but the recent boom has undoubtedly driven it to new heights.
Fox News reached out to Signal with a request for comment.
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