Best Secure Messaging Apps with End-To-End Encryption

With an upsurge in hackings over the past couple years, a growing concerns are rising among people about how to keep their data private. The phrase “end-to-end encryption” has been appearing more than ever around the Internet and in the news. People concern about hackers and third-party surveillance, however, maybe they just don’t feel good when someone else see their chat records.

It is really unpleasant to think that what you say and share with your friends in chat records could be reached by the third-party or analyzed by some algorithm. After the day that Edward Snowden has revealed that the United States already engages in mass digital surveillance of Americans, a quest for privacy protection has given rise to a large number of secure apps to address the needs of people’s conscious. Apps like Siginal, Telegram and WhatsApp sprung up to provide the service “end-to end encryption”. This article will help you to figure out what exactly does it mean and which app worth a try?

What is end-to-end encryption?
End-to-end encryption, also called E2EE, is a system of communication where only the communicating users can read the messages. The original purpose of end-to-end encryption is to prevent third-parties from accessing data while it’s transferred from one device to another. This system is designed to combat any attempts trying to hack or steal sensitive data of users. Suppliers providing end-to-end encryption enables sender to lock his messages and only the recipient can read it.

The quest for end-to-end encryption is not just to avoid the third-party surveillance. In practice, people just believe in this simple general principle that what you say in a conversation ought to be stay private between you and the people you chat with. Here are some best free apps provided with you to realize your desire.

Telegram: Totally Free for Android and iOS

One of the hottest apps among this field is Telegram. Not like other apps, from the first day, Telegram offers an alternative security mode for users. That means if you want to communicate with people under E2E encryption, you need to turn to “Secret Chat” mode. A lot of people think the big problem Telegram has is that it doesn’t encrypt chats by default. There are many Telegram users who think they are communicating in an encrypted way, when they’re not because they don’t realize that they have to turn on an additional setting.

Signal: Best and Free for Android and iOS

It is said that Signal is the most preferred app to Edward Snowden. It has been seen a huge surge popularity after Trump won the US presidential election. It is among the easiest to operate and popularized by its simple UI design with color changes for different contacts to avoid sending the message to the wrong person. It is worth mentioning that Signal was developed by a nonprofit company, so it won’t collect your personal data for interests and won’t show you ads for money. In short, Signal is the most cost-effective and worth trying private protection app.

WhatsApp: Pretty Good and Convenient for Android and iOS

Like other apps mentioned above, WhatsApp also promised to provide users with end-to-end encryption. The best advantage of WhatsApp is its convenience -- owned by Facebook. You must already be the user of Facebook, like other billions of people, so it’s a great convenient for you to talk with friends, family as well as other special person who do not want to install another message app with E2E encryption service. The only thing you should think over is that if your goal is to achieve a high-level encryption, then WhatsApp shouldn’t be your consideration. Because it is reported that some account information is been used by Facebook for money.