The news about WhatsApp changing its privacy policy has been on the headlines for good reason. Tech giants are notorious for misusing consumer data and selling it with no moral standpoint.
With the recent change in the privacy policy, people have become even more suspicious of WhatsApp using their data just like the other giants.
As a sign of protest, people are quickly moving to other platforms and a few of them are standing out.
The quickly rising platforms are Signal and Telegram.
Today, we’re going to discuss both platforms and allow you to make a sound decision before you make the switch.
What is Signal?
Signal is a cross-platform messaging application, just like WhatsApp. It stands out from WhatsApp by its different production model: open source development.
Where WhatsApp is controlled by Facebook, Signal relies on the open source community. This means that Signal can’t be controlled by a few select people, unlike WhatsApp.
It’s also secure with end-to-end encryption. That means no one will be able to intercept your messages or calls.
Signal uses the same selling points of WhatsApp like free messaging and calls. There are also no ads to interrupt your conversations as Signal has a very strong community which constantly donates to the platform.
Is it free?
Signal is free for everyone and it intends to stay that way forever. Signal is available on all famous platforms like Android, iPhone, iPad, Windows, Mac, and Linux.
Do people even use Signal?
Signal has been around for a while and with the recent changes, it’s growing exponentially. People are flocking to the app and that means it will also be easier to bring your friends onboard.
According to Signal, they’ve had over 500 million users in the first week of January. They also said they believe this figure will keep rising.
With such a strong user base, the Signal community will obviously make sure the platform remains usable and is always updated with the latest features.
If you think that Signal might just be a random messaging app with primitive features, it’s time to lose that thought. Signal is here to stay and will definitely give WhatsApp a run for its money.
Telegram
Like WhatsApp and Signal, Telegram is also another messaging app which provides the same kind of features.
It focuses on end-to-end encryption services that allow secure communication without any interference.
Telegram has been in service since 2013 and has attracted a large number of users to its platform in the last 8 years.
Telegram contains an additional feature called secret chats. Secret chats allows users to send messages that open on specific devices only, thus adding an additional layer of security. Messages sent within secret chats can also be set to self-destruct.
How much does it cost?
Like its competition, Telegram is also free. It’s also available on all major platforms. The only downside is that Telegram is unavailable in a few countries like Iran, Pakistan, China, Indonesia, Russia, Thailand and a few more.
In those places, they’ve been banned by the government due to its secure nature which doesn’t allow them to spy on individuals.
This at least shows that the app fulfills its promises of secure communication.
Is it popular?
Telegram also has a very large user base that surpassed 500 million. It also happened fairly recently as people started moving away from WhatsApp.
If you do choose to move to Telegram, you can be assured that the app will constantly receive updates and new features.
So which one do I choose?
Telegram and Signal both offer secure, privacy-respecting services. Both offer end-to-end encryption which has proven to be extremely secure.
Both apps are very simple to use and follow the basic principles of messaging applications. Switching to either of them won’t be like learning a new app and you can easily get started with them.
As far as updates and new features go, both apps have extremely large communities and will definitely stick around for the foreseeable future. You don’t have to worry about a buggy app that doesn’t get updated frequently.
Both are also free, but Telegram aims to add paid services too.
The downside of Telegram is that it has ads while Signal does not. If advertising irritates you, you should use Signal.
We suggest you give both apps a try and see which one feels more natural to you. We like both of them and haven’t yet decided which one we’ll stick with.
Once we’ve spent more time with them, we’ll give out a detailed review and tell you which one is better for you.
I love understanding how different technologies work and explaining them to people. From tech guides to opinions, everything is interesting to me. Other than that, I enjoy writing about various science-related topics and conversing with people.