What’s the closest thing we have to a perfect private messanger?
In my mind the perfect private messanger is both completely secure, and also completely anonymous.
All the mainstream messengers can pretty much ensure the contents of the message will not be revealed…but that is not good enough. I want to be able to deploy and establish a completely anonymous AND private channel of communication on a dime without having to jump through extreme operational security hoops.
Does it really exist?
Session, Signal, Matrix, and more.
AFAIK simplex is the closest we have to perfect privacy.
SimpleX is currently the best one possible.
All the security of signal without needing a phone number.
Everything can be through tor. Contact link can be formed with a one time use code that you DM someone privately.
Anything more advanced and you’re basically in internet dead drop territory. An encoded message on a pastebin through tor. Congratulations, you’ve entered pedophile/terrorist level security realm.
Simplex does check alot of those boxes… but smp traffic is easily identifiable unless your jumping through the major hoops of establishing a totally anonymous proxy.
An encoded message on a pastebin through tor. Congratulations, you’ve entered pedophile/terrorist level security realm.
Thats to bad being anonymous and secure puts you in that category. It shouldn’t!
Honestly, pedos & terrorists get the whole world cooperation on doxing them. So if they’re not using a tool or method then it’s not proof against nation states.
Why the need for complete anonymity though? Literally only pedos operate at that level so that nobody can squeal on the others if they are busted (they inevitably need to mess up a real kid because their CSAM isn’t good enough).
This kind of mindset is what make the privacy community seem like outcasts. Yes, pedophiles and other criminals would benefit from complete anonymity, but that does not mean we should draw the line at how anonymous someone gets to be because “only pedos operate at that level”.
Journalist and human rights activists are criminals in certain circumstances. Being a criminal doesn’t mean they are bad.
SimpleX?
Tox would also be fantastic, but they need to improve their encryption and get it audited. Also, some nicer UIs in the various clients would be nice.
Briar, SimpleX, I2Pchat on desktop, maybe LXMF/Reticulum/Sideband over I2P if you want to get techy.
Cwtch is in the same space
Signal is far from perfect but its good enough for me.
Your own xmpp server
I host one but the more I analyze privacy implications the worse it looks.
Only you and maybe 10 other people will connect to that server’s IP, port 5222. This makes it very easy to track your group by telco operators and people who have access to their logs.
Even if you use a VPN or Tor at all times, most of your other users likely don’t.
And the domain is registered to someone’s name too, although I know this can be worked around.
How is that anonymous?
Because no one will ever send you a message
~/s it was a joke. Hold you horses xmpp fans. Im not attacking anyone here~
