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"Time To Move On From WhatsApp To Signal? 5 Reasons Why You Should Download Signal Messaging App"

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Time To Move On From WhatsApp To Signal? 5 Reasons Why You Should Download Signal Messaging App

Over the past one decade, WhatsApp has undoubtedly been ruling as the most popular messaging application across the world but looks like the recently announced terms of service and privacy policy has made the users slowly flock to alternative solutions.

The Facebook-owned company earlier this week began sending in-app notifications to users about changes to its policy and terms of service, indicating that user data would be shared with its parent company, Facebook. The message suggests the key changes in how WhatsApp will collect and process users’ information going forward, and the partnership with Facebook, its parent company, as part of a larger unification drive between the family of apps.

The firm has made it mandatory for the users to accept its policy and terms of service else their accounts will be deleted. The firm has set February 8th as the deadline, which is a month from now.

All About ‘Signal‘ App

Signal is a well-known privacy-focused messaging app, that is available on Android, iOS, and other operating systems. The messaging app is a cross-platform open source, peer reviewed service which offers end-to-end encryption for messages and media shared between users.

The application allows users to send and receive high-fidelity messages, participate in HD voice/video calls and stay connect with help of other new features.

As stated by the firm, its advanced privacy-preserving technology is always enabled so that users can easily share their moments.

Reasons Why Users Are Switching To ‘Signal‘

Secured conversation: State-of-the-art end-to-end encryption (powered by the open source Signal Protocol) keeps your conversations secure. Privacy isn’t an optional mode — it’s just the way that Signal works. Every message, every call, every time.

Fast message delivery: Messages are delivered quickly and reliably, even on slow networks. Signal is optimized to operate in the most constrained environment possible.

Free signal: Signal is a completely independent 501c3 nonprofit. Development is supported by users like you. No advertisements, no trackers.

Existing phone number: You can use your existing phone number and address book to securely communicate with your friends.

Editing features: Use the built-in image editing features to sketch, crop, and flip your outgoing photos. There’s even a text tool so that you can add more words to the 1,000 that your picture is already worth.

Secure your communication with Signal App.

Download Signal Private messenger Now!!

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Meanwhile, global installs of WhatsApp’s mobile app declined 43 per cent YoY for the January to April duration. However, it still outdid its competitors with nearly 172.3 million installs.

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Signal app is a free messaging and voice-talk platform similar to WhatsApp but with one most important difference “Privacy”.  In fact, the tagline of the Signal messaging app is “Say hello to privacy”, a line that will resonate well with the users and make them want to trust the brand.

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The Signal Messenger App and Its Rising Popularity in India

The signal is all over. From Elon Musk of Tesla fame’s popular two-word tweet “Use Signal” to your local and international tech group chats, there is a buzz around the latest Signal messenger app. It has been endorsed by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Anand Mahindra, the chairman of Mahindra Group. It has toppled WhatsApp and is now at the top of the free messaging apps search results in the App Store. Since Elon Musk’s famous tweet, it has been the most downloaded messaging app in Germany, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Finland, and many other countries. Such a surge made it difficult for the Signal app mobile number verification of new accounts. It has been resolved now.

What is Signal app and why is it gaining popularity?

Signal app is a free messaging and voice-talk platform similar to WhatsApp but with one most important difference “Privacy”.  In fact, the tagline of the Signal messaging app is “Say hello to privacy”, a line that will resonate well with the users and make them want to trust the brand.

The Signal Wikipedia page gives the information that even though the initial release of Signal app was on 29th July 2014, its stable release on Android was in December 2020 and on iOS was on 10th January 2021.

The Signal app runs on donations got from the non-profit Signal Foundation organization. The Signal Foundation was started by Brian Acton, co-founder of WhatsApp and Moxie Marlinspike, the CEO of Signal messenger app.

Benefits of Signal app:

The messages, audio and video calls, group calls and even the stickers sent are end-to-end encrypted. This encryption technology that Signal first created is now used by WhatsApp and Skype.

The messages on your chats can be set to disappear after a certain time. This time gap can be customized based on user needs.

The users cannot automatically add other people to the groups unless they get their permission.

The messages on Signal are stored on the local end device, which is your mobile phone. The Signal app servers do not store the data nor does it allow the users to backup their Signal chats on the cloud servers (Google Drive or iCloud). This means that when you migrate to a new number or get a new mobile device, you cannot transfer your messages on the new device or number.

Signal app can also be accessed on the laptop or desktop just like WhatsApp. But the difference here is that all the chats that are on your mobile device do not get loaded on the laptop and vice versa.

You can send a message to any user on your contact list. Users who do not have Signal app installed on the phone will be sent messages through regular SMS.

The audio and video calls on the Signal app are end-to-end encrypted. This is shown through the small padlock icon next to the phone icon.

To migrate an existing WhatsApp group to the Signal app, you have to create a new group on Signal by adding just one member of the group. Now, share a generated group invite link on the WhatsApp group that you want to shift to the Signal app. The users can join the newly formed group on Signal by clicking on the link.

You can also send messages to yourself on the Signal app through the ‘Note to Self’ option. By this, you can keep a list or a note of important things.

Signal app gives you an option to blur your profile photo.

Conclusion

The signal is very clear. People need trust and Facebook/WhatsApp has failed in it miserably. It is time to switch over to Signal now!

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Time to move on from Whatsapp to Signal

The Signal app is free to download and was developed to send encrypted text, image, audio, and video messages for individuals and groups. It can also be used for encrypted phone calls between Signal users for mobile users. Here’s a quick look at what this app is all about, and why there’s been a sudden surge of new users for it. What is Signal? Signal is a communication app that supports messaging, voice and video calls, and more. It’s fully cross-platform, free, open source, and features end-to-end encryption. This makes it a popular choice for users looking for enhanced privacy and security.

Who created the app?

The app is developed by the Signal Foundation and Signal Messenger LLC and it is a non-profit company. The app was created by Moxie Marlinspike, American cryptographer and currently CEO of Signal Messenger.

The origins of the Signal app go back to 2010, when a company called Whisper Systems first launched two Android apps: One was TextSecure, which encrypted text messages, and the other was RedPhone, which did the same for voice calls. In 2011, the company was bought by Twitter and the apps were released as free open-source software.

WhatsApp vs Telegram vs Signal:

Which messaging app should you use? In 2013, one of the founders of Whisper Systems, Moxie Marlinspike, departed Twitter. He formed another startup, Open Whisper Systems, and continued to develop TextSecure and RedPhone. In 2014, it was announced that the company would merge the two apps into one, with the new name Signal. In 2018, Marlinspike and WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton formed the non-profit Signal Foundation to continue the development of the app, and to keep it free and open-source software. Recently, there’s been a surge of new downloads for Signal. Most people believe it’s due to changes at another popular encrypted messaging service, WhatsApp. In early January 2021, WhatsApp revealed that it will change its terms and services agreement, saying that it will start sending personal data to its parent company Facebook. This will begin officially on some time in 2021.Obviously, many WhatsApp users don’t like this upcoming change and have moved onto other chat apps like Signal.

What platforms support the app? Signal is available for iOS and Android devices and is also available for PCs running on Windows, MacOS, and Linux. The program is also open-source, so developers are encouraged to create their own clients.

What are some of the privacy features on Signal?

Signal has plenty of privacy-focused features. For one, Signal’s privacy settings have an option of ‘Relay Calls’ where the calls go through a Signal server to avoid revealing your IP address to your contact. But enabling this does reduce call quality, according to Signal, and might not be necessary for everyone.

It also offers the option to turn on or off Read Receipts, where someone can see when you have read their messages. It also gives an option to turn on or off typing indicators to show when a message is being typed. Plus there is no feature like Status as seen on WhatsApp, which can show when you are online.

Signal also has a Screen Lock feature, where you can rely on Touch ID, FaceID or your iOS device’s passcode to access the app. However, incoming calls and message notifications can be answered even if the Screen Lock is enabled.

What data does Signal collect?

If you look at the Signal app’s privacy nutrition label on Apple’s App Store, the only data that is collected is ‘Contact Info’, which is the phone number. According to Signal’s privacy policy, it is “designed to never collect or store any sensitive information.” All messages and calls on the app are end-to-end encrypted, meaning no third-party, nor Signal can access them.

Secure your communications with Signal.

Download Signal Private Messenger now!

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Time to move on from Whatsapp to Signal

The Signal app is free to download and was developed to send encrypted text, image, audio, and video messages for individuals and groups. It can also be used for encrypted phone calls between Signal users for mobile users. Here’s a quick look at what this app is all about, and why there’s been a sudden surge of new users for it. What is Signal? Signal is a communication app that supports messaging, voice and video calls, and more. It’s fully cross-platform, free, open source, and features end-to-end encryption. This makes it a popular choice for users looking for enhanced privacy and security.

Who created the app?

The app is developed by the Signal Foundation and Signal Messenger LLC and it is a non-profit company. The app was created by Moxie Marlinspike, American cryptographer and currently CEO of Signal Messenger.

The origins of the Signal app go back to 2010, when a company called Whisper Systems first launched two Android apps: One was TextSecure, which encrypted text messages, and the other was RedPhone, which did the same for voice calls. In 2011, the company was bought by Twitter and the apps were released as free open-source software.

WhatsApp vs Telegram vs Signal:

Which messaging app should you use? In 2013, one of the founders of Whisper Systems, Moxie Marlinspike, departed Twitter. He formed another startup, Open Whisper Systems, and continued to develop TextSecure and RedPhone. In 2014, it was announced that the company would merge the two apps into one, with the new name Signal. In 2018, Marlinspike and WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton formed the non-profit Signal Foundation to continue the development of the app, and to keep it free and open-source software. Recently, there’s been a surge of new downloads for Signal. Most people believe it’s due to changes at another popular encrypted messaging service, WhatsApp. In early January 2021, WhatsApp revealed that it will change its terms and services agreement, saying that it will start sending personal data to its parent company Facebook. This will begin officially on some time in 2021.Obviously, many WhatsApp users don’t like this upcoming change and have moved onto other chat apps like Signal.

What platforms support the app? Signal is available for iOS and Android devices and is also available for PCs running on Windows, MacOS, and Linux. The program is also open-source, so developers are encouraged to create their own clients.

What are some of the privacy features on Signal?

Signal has plenty of privacy-focused features. For one, Signal’s privacy settings have an option of ‘Relay Calls’ where the calls go through a Signal server to avoid revealing your IP address to your contact. But enabling this does reduce call quality, according to Signal, and might not be necessary for everyone.

It also offers the option to turn on or off Read Receipts, where someone can see when you have read their messages. It also gives an option to turn on or off typing indicators to show when a message is being typed. Plus there is no feature like Status as seen on WhatsApp, which can show when you are online.

Signal also has a Screen Lock feature, where you can rely on Touch ID, FaceID or your iOS device’s passcode to access the app. However, incoming calls and message notifications can be answered even if the Screen Lock is enabled.

What data does Signal collect?

If you look at the Signal app’s privacy nutrition label on Apple’s App Store, the only data that is collected is ‘Contact Info’, which is the phone number. According to Signal’s privacy policy, it is “designed to never collect or store any sensitive information.” All messages and calls on the app are end-to-end encrypted, meaning no third-party, nor Signal can access them.

Secure your communications with Signal.

Download Signal Private Messenger now!

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"Time to move on from Whatsapp to Signal "

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How to manage notifications on the Signal secure-messaging app on a computer or mobile device

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How to manage notifications on the Signal secure-messaging app on a computer or mobile device

You can manage notifications on Signalto choose how you want your message alerts to look and sound.

Signal is a secure, end-to-end encrypted messaging app that allows users to manage notifications in the desktop, Android, and iPhone apps.

Signal’s secure-messaging app has a number of useful features, such as the ability to customize message notifications — which, like Signal’s end-to-end encryption, can help protect your privacy. You can manage your notification settings on all versions of Signal: PC, Mac, Android, and iPhone.

Signal’s notification management settings are relatively extensive compared to some other messaging apps, but here’s a succinct guide to get you started.

How to manage notifications on Signal using the desktop app

Open the Signal app and sign in.

Click on your profile icon in the upper left corner of the screen, then click “Preferences.”📷

Almost all of your notification settings can be managed from the pop-up that appears. For example, you can choose to disable notifications altogether, or remove name and content from notifications for increased privacy.📷

The only notification management setting that can’t be controlled via Preferences is muting specific conversations. To do so, tap on the conversation you wish to mute, then tap the icon resembling three horizontal dots. Finally, tap “Mute notifications” and then tap the duration for which you wish to mute the conversation

How to manage notifications on Signal using the Android app

Open the Signal app and sign in.

Tap on your profile icon, located in the upper left corner of the screen.📷

Tap on “Notifications.”📷

From this screen, you can toggle notification settings for most Signal functions. For example, you can choose what information displays in each notification, and the sounds each alert makes.📷

If you want to mute a specific conversation, tap on the conversation you wish to mute, then tap on the name of your contact at the top of the screen. Finally, tap “Mute notifications” and tap on the duration for which you wish to mute the conversation. You can also set custom notification settings for a particular conversation by tapping “Custom notifications” instead.

How to manage notifications on Signal using the iPhone app

Open the Signal app and sign in.

To change general Signal notification settings, tap on your profile icon located in the upper left corner of the screen, then tap “Notifications.” Here, you can choose your message sounds, notification content, and more.📷

To silence a conversation or set custom sound for a specific conversation, tap on that specific conversation, then tap on your contact’s name on the top of the screen. Then, tap “Mute” to mute the conversation or tap “Message Sound” to set a custom notification sound.

The Signal app is developed by the Signal Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by donations.

Signal also has other built-in features around privacy.

Secure your communications with Signal.

Download Signal Private Messenger now!