SimpleX Chat is an instant messenger that is decentralized and doesn’t depend on any unique identifiers such as phone numbers or usernames. Users of SimpleX Chat can scan a QR code or click an invite link to participate in group conversations.
-privacyguides.org
It’s clearly proving to be the most innovative technology when it comes to decentralized communication, in my opinion.
After Signal dropped SMS support, most of my friends jumped ship. No way they’re using this.
Session messenger allows you to chat without linking a phone number to your account. It’s what drug dealers use lol.
Same for simplex 🫠
What really bothers me about Session is that you effectively cannot selfhost - hosting a node is prohibitively expensive. So seems like the only people who can realistically host a node are crypto bros, big companies and government agencies. Thanks, I would rather stick with IRC/XMPP/Matrix.
I’d definitely use it if my friends were using it. Sadly, I can’t even get them to use signal.
Find better friends. I say that but my friends decided to leave Facebook Messenger group chat… for Instagram. Now they use both.
Same… Sigh…
I don’t need people to be hyper-privacy minded. But just a little bit at least. I’m not expecting everybody to self host a matrix server and use element and run self hosted services on their own RPI.
But just not pick one of the worst ones?
I’ve been a fan of SimpleX for a while now. Privacy comes at the cost of convenience, and SimpleX is the most private messaging platform according to this spreadsheet.
Thanks for this report.
Beware https://privacyspreadsheet.com/messaging-apps uses Google fonts. So much for privacy.
No Jami? Absurd.
Jami hasn’t had a security audit
Doesn’t work, never will. Partly because both have ro be online to chaz
Jami really needs to get talked about more. I think it’s great.
Any chat protocol without full mutli-device support is not really an option for me https://github.com/simplex-chat/simplex-chat/issues/444.
I think it’s just that there are too many options and the communities are so fragmented. I’m trying out simplex but it still feels like beta software. Regardless I’d like to see it succeed so we have a real private alternative that doesn’t rely on big tech of shady government sponsorship.
I don’t trust for profit venture capital funding, if you want to see where it ends up just Look at how telegram or wickr transitions from being “open” and free to getting stripped of features only to have them become paid only and the wickr sold off to Amazon and ended all non business support…the business model for making a profit off chat applications is bad for users.
Also now that signal supports usernames I have no reason to use anything else even for people I wouldn’t want having my real number.
Are chats synced with the mobile and desktop clients?
In F-Droid, after disabling all anti-features, SimpleX still is listed. Signal never will be due to connecting to GCM or Firebase. Molly is an improvement for Signal but not for untrackable privacy like SimpleX from using a different ID with each individual SimpleX contact.
I hoped Molly leaved the sms feature, that is the only thing I can use as a bait for let my friends switch to signal.
No, because SMS code was removed from Signal, I believe Molly would have to fork the code if they try to put it back in.
Not to mention, SMS was removed because it’s inherently insecure at every level. Keeping it would mean there’d be an insecure side channel into the protocol. While it’s a useful onboarding mechanism, it can also be abused — and was. So eventually it got removed to prefer privacy and security over convenience.
Does it have forward/future security?
¹ Repudiation in SimpleX Chat will include client-server protocol from v5.7 or v5.8. Currently it is implemented but not enabled yet, as its support requires releasing the relay protocol that breaks backward compatibility.
² Post-quantum cryptography is available in beta version, as opt-in only for direct conversations. See below how it will be rolled-out further.
Some columns are marked with a yellow checkmark:
- when messages are padded, but not to a fixed size.
- when repudiation does not include client-server connection. In case of Cwtch it appears that the presence of cryptographic signatures compromises repudiation (deniability), but it needs to be clarified.
- when 2-factor key exchange is optional (via security code verification).
- when post-quantum cryptography is only added to the initial key agreement and does not protect break-in recovery.
@SolarPunker@slrpnk.net I’ve not heard of anyone who does “not like” it? Many don’t know about it maybe. I can’t think of anything I’ve seen against it as it ticks most of the boxes for excellent privacy and has been very usable for me.
Me, my friends, and family are using it
Aaand… Everyone is hating it, tbh 🤣
The notifications are unreliable and at the same time it drains 20% of the battery
Waiting for fixes, also want to setup my own relay
Simple answer to the question so far as I can see: in order to connect with someone, you have to video conference with them and show them a code. So the anonymity is only as anonymous as the video conference you use to do that. All of the benefits it claims are merely an illusion.
Just send them the code. It’s okay if the channel over which they the receive the code is insecure
Running out of names for apps? I’ll just borrow from Herpes Simplex… seems catchy.
I’m not saying it necessarily is a good name but simplex is just a Latin word that’s used in many contexts. I for one would have never thought of Herpes here
HERPES would be an AMAZING messaging app, since a estimated 60-95% of adults have it already… So very catchy!
Hey man, do you have herpes? Try it out. It is really easy to get one.
What does their multi-device story look like? Can I use one identity/account on multiple devices, with synced read state etc?
I liked the fact that it is really easy to self-host.
I tried it with friends on discord and in 10min I had a vps with a server running.
