Today, we will find out which of the three messengers has made it into the top spot for being the best tool when it comes to privacy. We'll also discuss why you should consider more than one of them.
We'd just like to point out that what follows is simply our personal opinion.
Signal is the only one which is 100% Open Source and with Moxie behind it, it is the best solution when it comes to calling, texting and group chats. But you have to be comfortable with showing and sharing your telephone number with your contacts. Because of this and the forcing of Google Services, we don't use Signal on a daily basis. We love Signal but these two issues stop it from being the most private solution around. Signal is, however, the perfect tool when it comes to chatting and calling with your iOS and Android trusted friends as you know each other's telephone numbers anyway. Signal is a true winner when it comes to the encryption part and thanks to a fully Open Source code, there is not much to argue about there.
BBM Protected is a great tool and the undisputed winner when it comes to features. We love to use BBM Protected as our Facebook replacement, and we know we can trust it for all communications with our contacts. BBM has a lot more to offer than most people think. Sadly no Source Code has been released, and we need to trust BlackBerry and BlackBerry alone for their explanation on how the encryption works. There is a white paper in case you are interested to read a little more on how the protection works.
Threema is the daily drive when it comes to most of our group chats. We love the way we can do this, starting pools within the group, and how easy it is to operate Threema. Of course there is no calling feature, but this review is really all about messengers anyway. Threema has us hooked as we are not forced to share our telephone number or email address. We can block individuals, and set different ring tones for chats and group chats. Most importantly, it's the small extras which make Threema fantastic, like the pin or passport / touch ID protection of the app itself. Threema works and it works without Google Services. This allows it to also work on a BlackBerry. And yes, BlackBerry is still around!
Overall, to say we have one winner would not be fair, as each of the messengers is a winner in its own right. Signal has an Open Source code which is fantastic. BBM has the best and most features, making it so much more than just a messenger. Then Threema has all the little extra privacy and security features which make it really standout when you are looking for the ultimate privacy tool.
If you are on BBM, please check out our channel "decentralize.today" plus some other great channels which are linked below:
C003D7C22 (Bitcoin)
C003010B7 (Security and privacy)
C003319F7 (Privacy Central)
C003C2D50 (Newfangled)
C000C39AB (Thoughts from Lebanon)
C0014E6FD (Shadowberry)
C0028049B (UTB Blogs)
