Signal
An end to end encrypted messenger run by a nonprofit, with open source apps
Alternative toWhatsAppTelegram
Signal is a messaging app for text, voice, video and groups where every conversation is end to end encrypted by default. It is the open source alternative to WhatsApp and Telegram, run by the nonprofit Signal Foundation, with AGPL-3.0 clients.
Best for when
- you want private conversations without a company collecting your metadata
- you share sensitive files or information with a small circle
- you want a messenger with no ads and no tracking
Watch out for
- most of your contacts are probably still on WhatsApp
- registration needs a phone number, even if you hide it with a username
- there are no business features like catalogues or an official business API
Private by default, not by setting
WhatsApp uses the Signal protocol for message content, but it is owned by Meta and collects metadata about who you talk to and when. Signal encrypts the same things and is built to keep as little metadata as possible: no ads, no tracking, and the server is designed to know very little about who talks to whom.
It does what people expect from a messenger: one to one and group chats, voice and video calls, disappearing messages, stories, file sharing and usernames so you do not have to hand out your phone number. The desktop app links to your phone and works on Windows, macOS and Linux.
What switching really costs
The cost is social, not technical. A messenger is only useful if your contacts are on it, and most families and businesses in the Arab world live on WhatsApp. In practice people keep both, and use Signal for the conversations that matter.
Some conveniences are missing. There is no WhatsApp Business style catalogue or business API, backups are more limited and work differently on each platform, and you still need a phone number to register. You cannot realistically host Signal yourself, so you are trusting the Signal service even though the code is open.
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