OCS banner and logo
Keeping clients' computers safe and profitable for over 30 years



Home Forms About Current Newsletter subscribe 
Search All Articles

Browse by Category


powered by pmc2m

 

Signal

It is now possible to text, call, video call, and even group chat securely from your cell phone or computer. It works with Windows, Mac, Debian based Linux, iPhones, and Android phones. It is free. As far as I can tell from using it for many months, it is as good and easy to use as any messaging or phone app, but I'm not a heavy emoji and text user, so maybe it doesn't do some fancy thing. Why not be secure if given the choice?

Very funny Christmas tweet from Signal: It's easier to stay on the nice list when Santa has no idea what you're saying. Happy Holidays from Signal. https://t.co/bEg7wd3cQJ

As an Open Source project supported by grants and donations, Signal can put users first. There are no ads, no affiliate marketers, no creepy tracking. Just open technology for a fast, simple, and secure messaging experience. The way it should be.

Signal uses end to end encryption. That means that it is encrypted on your phone, tablet or computer, sent out, and decrypted only after it is received. No one in between can see it. No phone carrier, ISP, or other snoop. No one is tracking you, or advertising to you. Of course, it can only do this if the other person has Signal to decrypt the message, video or call. If they use some insecure application, then Signal lets you know the message is not secure and acts like a regular messaging app.

What do the experts say, is it really secure?

  • Edward Snowden, Coder, Whistleblower, and privacy advocate: "Use anything by Open Whisper Systems" (Signal's maker)
  • Laura Poitras, Oscar-winning filmmaker and journalist: "Signal is the most scalable encryption tool we have. It is free and peer reviewed. I encourage people to use it everyday. "
  • Bruce Schneier, Internationally known security expert, cryptographer, and author of many highly regarded books on security and privacy: "I am regularly impressed with the thought and care put into both the security and the usability of this app. It's my first choice for an encrypted conversation."
  • Matthew Daniel Green, cryptographer and security technologist. Green is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the Johns Hopkins Information Security Institute: "After reading the code, I literally discovered a line of drool running down my face. It’s really nice. "
  • Steve Gibson, President of Gibson Research, Inc. American Software engineer, security researcher, and IT security proponent. "in terms of the design of the crypto, for an asynchronous secure messaging system, Signal is it."
  • NY Times Tech Fix column by Brian X. Chen: "you would be foolish not to download the messaging app Signal onto your smartphone and computer."

Link to download and get more information: https://signal.org/

Further Reading






Date: January 2018


Creative Commons License
This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

 
 
  Please direct questions/suggestions about website to the webmaster