Signal had about 7.5 million installations worldwide from the App Store and Google Play between Thursday and Sunday, more than 43 times the facilities it received during the previous week, according to the firm d Sensor Tower market intelligence.
Encrypted messaging services like Signal have gained popularity in recent years as people are increasingly concerned about protecting their private information. However, this particular bulge of the Signal user occurs as a result of confusion over an updated notification of terms of service of the encrypted messaging service owned by Facebook WhatsApp.
Last week, Signal also received support from several of Silicon Valley’s top names, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
The leap in new Signal downloads also followed the Washington DC riots and moved forward Amazon (AMZN), apple (AAPL) i Google (GOOGL) to sever ties with Parler, the social media service favored by members of the far right. Telegram, another encrypted messaging app on Tuesday, said it attracted 25 million new users worldwide in the previous 72 hours, raising its total active user base to 500 million.
The huge surge in Signal traffic caused some errors. Thursday, Signal
he tweeted it is possible that verification codes for new user registrations are delayed “because there are now so many new people trying to join Signal (we can barely register our enthusiasm)”. The problem was solved over the weekend.
“We currently have a record level of Signal app downloads worldwide,” Signal staff said in a Reddit post on Friday.
What about WhatsApp?
WhatsApp began notifying users last month of its updated terms of service and privacy policy, which people must accept in order to continue using the app beyond February 8th.
Many users expressed concern over a section of WhatsApp’s privacy policy that details what user data is collected and shared with parent company Facebook, which has a troubled reputation for protecting user data. .
All private messages between individuals and most WhatsApp companies are protected by end-to-end encryption, which means the app can’t view or share them with Facebook (users will receive a notification before chatting with a company where the messages are not final) -end encrypted). But WhatsApp collects other user data, such as how and when someone uses the app, and information about the user’s device, such as IP addresses.
WhatsApp’s privacy policy states that the user information it collects may be shared with other Facebook companies “to help operate, provide, improve, understand, personalize, support and market our services and their offerings.”
However, these data-sharing practices are not new, according to the company.
That’s what has changed: WhatsApp privacy was last updated globally in 2016. At the time, it offered WhatsApp users the ability to turn off data sharing with Facebook, an option that was available. for a short time. In this last update, the reference to this deactivation option that has already expired has been removed.
The most important policy update concerns business WhatsApp users. Report that companies that Use WhatsApp to talk to customers who may choose to store logs of their conversations on Facebook hosting services.
“The update does not change WhatsApp data sharing practices with Facebook and does not affect the way people communicate privately with friends or family wherever they are in the world,” a WhatsApp spokesman said in a statement. who added that the company remains “deeply committed to protecting people’s privacy.”
In short: no additional WhatsApp user data will be shared with Facebook after accepting new terms that were not shared before. That is, unless you took advantage of the deactivation in 2016.
WhatsApp has tried to dispel confusion about the updated policy, even by posting frequently asked questions about its privacy practices.
Why Signal?
While the policy is not new, the dust has drawn attention to WhatsApp data sharing practices with Facebook that many people might not have read before clicking “accept”. This can encourage users to jump in, as Signal proves to be the most popular alternative.
Signal is another free app that provides encrypted messaging, calling and video chat. “Encrypted” means that the content of messages is shuffled until it reaches the recipient and no intermediary can see them. The app is run by the non-profit Signal Foundation, which launched in 2018 with the help of WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton, who left WhatsApp and Facebook the year before.
Acton said in a 2018 statement announcing the foundation’s launch that Signal aims to build “sustainable technology that respects users and does not depend on the commercialization of personal data”.
Amid the rush of new registrations, Signal is
launch of new features similar to WhatsApp, such as a wallpaper background for chats and an “envelope” section for user profiles. And a new one
apple (AAPL) the policy that requires apps to provide a tag detailing their privacy practices in the App Store can make it easier for users to compare the policies of various messaging apps.
Signal did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the rush of new registrations.
The app has received some high profile recommendations.
Tesla (TSLA)‘s Musk on January 7th
he tweeted: “Use the signal”.
Twitter (TWTR) CEO Jack Dorsey
he retweeted and then
published a Signal image at the top of the App Store graphic, subtitled with a chorus.
Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, too
he retweeted Musk’s post, which adds the message: “This is @signalapp, for those who don’t speak Elon.”
While their tweets did not mention Facebook or WhatsApp, both Musk and Dorsey have previously criticized the social media giant.
However, it seems that some people were confused by Musk’s advice. Actions of Signal advance (SIGL) – a small tech company based in Texas that has nothing to do with the messaging app – rose more than 6,000% in the days following Musk’s tweet, before tempering on Tuesday.
Signal, the messaging app, posted a blatant comment about the mix, saying, “Is that what stock analysts mean when they say the market is giving mixed signals?”
