Signal, the messaging app used by Edward Snowden, has finally made its debut on Android.
Six months upon its arrival in iOS, the encrypted text, chat and call app has arrived on Android devices, permitting users to confidently send secure messages between iOS and Android devices.
The developer, Open Whisper Systems (OWS), combined two of its existing apps, TextSecure and RedPhone, and incorporated them into this newly rolled out app on Google's Play Store. For current TextSecure users, they need to update the app in order to install Signal. RedPhone users, in the meantime, will be prompted to install the app.
Encrypted text messages, images or videos sent via Signal suggests the developer cannot see what users are transmitting. The app likewise allows users to send whatever medium they wish without worrying that hackers will find the information they are transmitting. Also, users can communicate with the use of their existing phone number and address book, instead of setting up a separate login, PINs or passwords.
With this capability this privacy-focused messaging app has in store, even privacy expert Snowden recommends it, saying on Twitter that he uses the app every day.
I use Signal every day. #notesforFBI (Spoiler: they already know) https://t.co/KNy0xppsN0
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) November 2, 2015
It is worth noting that Signal is only available for Android smartphones, at least for now. Support for Android tablets is already in the works. The developer has also promised that a desktop app is already in the pipeline.
Open Source
Interestingly, this Open Whisper's project is open source, allowing anyone to check out if there are security holes or other imperfections. The developers' code is, in fact, adopted by WhatsApp, which is currently used by 800 million people across the globe.
Additionally, Open Whisper System is already identified among the leaders in mobile encryption, as it has already been involved in a slew of other projects in the field.
"We cannot hear your conversations or see your messages, and no one else can either," Moxie Marlinspike, founder of OWS explains in a post. "Everything in Signal is always end-to-end encrypted, and painstakingly engineered in order to keep your communication safe."
