{"id":89884,"date":"2016-08-03T13:12:49","date_gmt":"2016-08-03T13:12:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sftarticles.wpenginepowered.com\/en\/?p=89884"},"modified":"2025-07-01T23:56:11","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T06:56:11","slug":"protect-your-privacy-when-using-communication-apps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/protect-your-privacy-when-using-communication-apps\/","title":{"rendered":"Protect Your Privacy When Using Communication Apps!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In an era plagued by heavy surveillance, malicious hackers, data theft, and viruses<strong>, privacy is a more pressing concern than ever.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>Find a Service That Puts Privacy First<\/h2>\n<p>The key to keeping your information private is finding a reputable service to utilize. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eff.org\/\">Electronic Frontier Foundation<\/a> (EFF) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the digital rights of the public. They&#8217;ve compiled a list of criteria that can <strong>help you determine the safety<\/strong> of a communication app prior to using it. To err on the side of safety, it&#8217;s ideal to use apps that meet at least six of the following guidelines:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>The data should be encrypted in transit<\/li>\n<li>The data should be encrypted to the extent that even service providers can&#8217;t recognize it.<\/li>\n<li>The data should conceal the identity of all contacts<\/li>\n<li>The provider utilizes perfect forward secrecy, which refers to a secure communication protocol that protects passwords even if they&#8217;re stolen<\/li>\n<li>The service utilizes an open-source code that can be analyzed and reviewed by the public<\/li>\n<li>All of the procedures used by the service regarding the cryptographic implementations are meticulously documented<\/li>\n<li>The service receives at least one independent audit every 12 months to assess security.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>The <strong>EFF created this list to help consumers<\/strong> determine which communication apps offer the best protection from both criminal hackers and government surveillance.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-89886 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/privacy.jpg\" alt=\"privacy\" width=\"1440\" height=\"860\" srcset=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/privacy.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/privacy-300x179.jpg 300w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/privacy-768x459.jpg 768w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/privacy-1024x612.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/privacy-1200x717.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1440px) 100vw, 1440px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3>Communication Apps That Meet EFF Guidelines<\/h3>\n<p>For a novice, identifying the EFF guidelines in apps can be confusing. Fortunately, Kaspersky has done the work for you. <strong>Here are some of the leading apps<\/strong> that have managed to conform to six or more of the EFF security recommendations.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Chatsecure<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Their name isn&#8217;t false advertising. In fact, Chatsecure offers<strong> some of the best security of all communication apps<\/strong> available. It&#8217;s free to the public, open-source, and encrypted to ensure the highest level of privacy. It&#8217;s ideal to use it in conjunction with Tor-powered Orbot privacy plugin, which adds an additional layer of security.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-89887 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/chatsecure.jpg\" alt=\"chatsecure\" width=\"428\" height=\"760\" srcset=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/chatsecure.jpg 428w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/chatsecure-169x300.jpg 169w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 428px) 100vw, 428px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>You can download\u00a0for <a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/apps\/details?id=info.guardianproject.otr.app.im\">Android<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/app\/chatsecure-encrypted-messenger\/id464200063?mt=8\">iOS<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>CryptoCat<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>CryptoCat is yet another app that&#8217;s passed the EFF test of approval. Meeting all seven guidelines, <strong>CryptoCat is an open-source and encrypted messaging<\/strong> system that will keep unwanted eyes out of your conversations. It&#8217;s currently available on <a href=\"https:\/\/download.crypto.cat\/client\/Cryptocat-darwin-x64.zip\">Mac OS X<\/a> operating systems and iPhones as well as Safari, Firefox, Chrome, and Opera web browsers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Mailvelope<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Mailvelope is a popular communication app that<strong> assists people with sending encrypted emails<\/strong>. Though not quite as safe as Chatsecure or CryptoCat, it meets six out of seven EFF standards and you can <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mailvelope.com\/\">find it here<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-89888 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/sft\/articles\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/mailvelope.jpg\" alt=\"mailvelope\" width=\"346\" height=\"197\" srcset=\"https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/mailvelope.jpg 346w, https:\/\/articles-img.sftcdn.net\/auto-mapping-folder\/sites\/3\/2016\/08\/mailvelope-300x171.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 346px) 100vw, 346px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>With so many privacy concerns to worry about, utilizing communication apps can be daunting. Nobody wants to be the victim of a cybercrime or government surveillance, and yet, as technology breaches rise, many worry their data is at risk. Fortunately, by exercising a bit of forethought and scrutiny, you can find communication apps that make your privacy a priority. Learn more about keeping your app usage safe.<\/p>\n<p>Read also: <a href=\"http:\/\/features.en.softonic.com\/stay-safe-the-5-best-password-managers\">Stay Safe: The 5 Best Password Managers<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In an era plagued by heavy surveillance, malicious hackers, data theft, and viruses, privacy is a more pressing concern than ever. Find a Service That Puts Privacy First The key to keeping your information private is finding a reputable service to utilize. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/protect-your-privacy-when-using-communication-apps\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Protect Your Privacy When Using Communication Apps!&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2040,"featured_media":89885,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","wpcf-pageviews":0},"categories":[],"tags":[],"usertag":[],"vertical":[],"content-category":[],"class_list":["post-89884","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89884","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2040"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=89884"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89884\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":328916,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89884\/revisions\/328916"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89885"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89884"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89884"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89884"},{"taxonomy":"usertag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/usertag?post=89884"},{"taxonomy":"vertical","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vertical?post=89884"},{"taxonomy":"content-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content-category?post=89884"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}