Secure chat
Over the years, instant messaging (or IM) has evolved into a full-fledged, feature-rich medium for communication. Besides simple text messages, a typical IM session includes the exchange of images, audio and even video streams. While the primary users of IM are home users, IM has also been adopted for use by companies behind corporate firewalls. Both kinds of users have a different set of requirements and a plethora of messaging services have popped up to satiate the growing demand for instant messaging.
In their bid to outdo the competition, virtually all of the popular IM services use their own home-brewed proprietary protocol. However, one thing many of them overlook is security. To offer a better communication experience to their users, these publicly accessible services route all your private exchanges via central servers that can be subpoenaed. So while IM clients and services are a dime a dozen, many of them don’t offer the level of security and privacy that makes good sense in this post-Snowden era. In this Roundup, we’ll look at some of the best options available to users that are looking to converse online without the fear of being snooped.
Security protocols
How do they secure the transmission?
The main reason for using these IM clients is because the developers have taken extra measures to ensure the security of the communication and focused on the privacy of their users. CryptoCat, for instance, works on the assumption that the network is controlled by an attacker who can intercept, tamper with and inject network messages.
To maintain privacy over such a network, CryptoCat helps its users set up end-to-end encrypted chat conversations using a Double Ratchet-based encryption protocol. The users link their devices to their Cryptocat account upon connection and can identify each other’s devices via the client’s device manager to prevent man-in-the-middle attacks. After the initial key exchange, it also manages the ongoing renewal and maintenance of short-lived session keys during the session. All devices linked to Cryptocat accounts will
