You Should Really Consider Installing Signal, an Encrypted Messaging App for iPhone
In the age of ubiquitous government surveillance, the only
way citizens can protect their privacy online is through encryption.
Historically, this has been extremely difficult for mere mortals; just
watch the video Edward Snowden made
to teach Glenn Greenwald how to encrypt his emails to see how confusing
it gets. But all of this is quickly changing as high-quality,
user-friendly encryption software becomes available.
App maker Open Whisper Systems took
an important step in this direction today with the release of a major
new version of its Signal encrypted calling app for iPhones and iPads.
The new version, Signal 2.0, folds in support for encrypted text
messages using a protocol called TextSecure, meaning users
can communicate using voice and text while remaining confident nothing
can be intercepted in transit over the internet.
That may not sound like a particularly big deal, given that other
encrypted communication apps are available for iOS, but Signal 2.0
offers something tremendously useful: peace of mind.
Unlike other text messaging products, Signal’s code
is open source, meaning it can be inspected by experts, and the app
also supports forward secrecy, so if an attacker steals your encryption
key, they cannot go back and decrypt messages they may have collected in
the past.
way citizens can protect their privacy online is through encryption.
Historically, this has been extremely difficult for mere mortals; just
watch the video Edward Snowden made
to teach Glenn Greenwald how to encrypt his emails to see how confusing
it gets. But all of this is quickly changing as high-quality,
user-friendly encryption software becomes available.
App maker Open Whisper Systems took
an important step in this direction today with the release of a major
new version of its Signal encrypted calling app for iPhones and iPads.
The new version, Signal 2.0, folds in support for encrypted text
messages using a protocol called TextSecure, meaning users
can communicate using voice and text while remaining confident nothing
can be intercepted in transit over the internet.
That may not sound like a particularly big deal, given that other
encrypted communication apps are available for iOS, but Signal 2.0
offers something tremendously useful: peace of mind.
Unlike other text messaging products, Signal’s code
is open source, meaning it can be inspected by experts, and the app
also supports forward secrecy, so if an attacker steals your encryption
key, they cannot go back and decrypt messages they may have collected in
the past.
