No messenger is completely private. It is doubtful that there is a company that can withstand serious pressure from the special services. Safety and usability is a swing: if it is reliable, in real life it cannot be used, and if it is convenient, it is always unsafe. But if you value anonymity, it is better to use one of these messengers and not generally recognized ones.

Signal

This is one of the most reliable instant messengers. All data is stored on a smartphone and Signal does not have access to it. The advantages of this service:

• collects almost no metadata;
• the messenger protocol has been independently audited;
• there are disappearing messages;
• end-to-end encrypted group text, voice and video chats.

Telegram

Messenger has built its cloud-based security infrastructure scattered around the world. The encryption keys are split and never stored with the information that is being encrypted. Advantages:

• there is synchronization on different devices;
• there are various features: channels, bots, polls, stickers, the ability to share the location, and so on.

Threema

The messenger is doing well with privacy. The office and servers are located in Switzerland, a country with strict privacy laws. Advantages:

• you do not need a phone number or email to register;
• almost does not store metadata;
• passed an independent audit.

Wickr Me

Its peculiarity is that messages are deleted six days after they were sent, and this period can be changed. Metadata is removed along with messages. Advantages:

• all messages disappear after reading;
• end-to-end encryption of group text and voice chats.

Element

All other apps in this overview use centralized servers. And with this application, users can create their servers or connect to those already created by other users. Advantages:

• the idea of​​ server federation is used;
• it is possible to communicate with users of other messengers.

Keybase

The peculiarity of the application is that it makes it possible to connect with other people through their profiles on social networks. Main advantages:

• self-destructing messages;
• 250 GB storage.

Wire

The developers made a full-fledged platform for teams from the mobile application with the necessary functionality – general chats, sending files, calls, etc. Advantages:

• there is a free version
• synchronization on 8 devices

In the context of the informatization of society, the issue of personal information protection acquires special attention. Today it is no secret to anyone that it is possible to gain access to information transmitted through mobile networks. Protected messengers allow you to ensure the security of communication and the safety of data.

The main requirement for the messenger is end-to-end encryption by default. The technology assumes that the messenger stores encryption keys only on the user’s device, without sending them to the server. The second criterion is a strong encryption protocol. If these conditions are met, no one will be able to access the transferred data.