Hi,

I’m looking for an instant messaging ( IM ) apps software/protocol that run on Android and computer

and meet the following requirements :

  • Open source !
  • E2EE
  • Messages are send in direct ! (not passing by a server)
  • handle group
  • Truly private ! ( That’s the tricky part )

 

The closest that I’ve found is Briar

  • +can work without internet ! (bluetooth, local wifi, files !)
  • + use TOR
  • - Mutual party have to exchange key (or your can introduce someone)
  • - sending media suck for now, poor image quality
  • - no call or voice messaging

 

I’ve been looking for alternatives:

  • Session
    • Sadly it keep ALL the conversation into server !!! so it’s a no go.
  • speek
    • I didn’t try it yet, any feedback ?
  • simplex
    • it look very promising ! (didn’t tried it yet)
    • + seem to handle multiple profile in one !
    • + do not require that both party send an invitation !
    • ! I didn’t found (yet) if the messages are send in direct or pass by a server…
      It’s not P2P all the messages pass by servers… too bad.

All post about alternatives or experience with the one that I cited are welcome.

  • ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com
    4·
    7 months ago

    Not exactly what you’re looking for, BUT the best bet would probably be jabber/xmpp. There is a server involved but you can be that server with a ras pi or an old laptop, or VPS, and with OMEMO e2ee, the server can’t see message content only “bob sends X to john.” And as the server owner you can keep no logs and trust yourself.

  • wincing_nucleus073@lemm.ee
    4·
    7 months ago

    simplex uses relays/servers, but incoming and outgoing messages are configured to pass through separate servers. you can see this in the network settings

    • rush@lemm.ee
      2·
      6 months ago

      Additionally these servers are random per-contact, can be changed around and all data and almost all metadata is either encrypted or otherwise protected ;)

  • KDE@monyet.cc
    2·
    7 months ago

    speek sucks in my opinion , i tried it ,

    tbh jami is the best app currently in the p2p messenging space

    berty sounds good as well , its built on top of ipfs and weshgaurd

    tox is good as well

    (i have messaged briar and berty team regarding some questions and i havent gotten its answer , i will update you when i get the answer)

  • rush@lemm.ee
    2·
    6 months ago

    SimpleX uses servers, but they’re just relays and due to SimpleX’s design, no single server can figure out who you are or who you’re talking to. By using Tor they also couldn’t band together and fingerprint you by IP.

    If you want to see the model explained, visit their website or just ask here, I’m glad to explain how it keeps your contact graph, identity and messages private :)

  • Possibly linux@lemmy.zipEnglish
    31·
    7 months ago

    Session doesn’t store logs on a central server. They are encrypted and stored on lokinet.

    Anyway other options are: Jami, Signal or Molly and maybe matrix. Keep in mind Briar will drain battery a bit and doesn’t receive notifications offline unless you setup a dedicated device

    • KDE@monyet.cc
      2·
      7 months ago

      https://www.securemessagingapps.com/ if you see closely for session , it says that attachments are centralized in their servers in canada

      session tries to promote their oxen cryptocurrency and lokinet which imo crypto currency are used by baiters to bait people into ruining their money

      you dont understand what signal /molly is , do you ? they are centralized server and OP specificially asked not centralized server / server for that matter

      matrix is good but it still need server , plus matrix.org takes quite a bit of metadata

      jami’s good but it uses turn server to verify your name

      briar’s bluetooth functionality can be violated plus no good ui/ux

      • Possibly linux@lemmy.zipEnglish
        1·
        7 months ago

        Session does not have centralized servers in Canada. There are issues with session but centralized servers aren’t one of them.

        • KDE@monyet.cc
          2·
          7 months ago

          uhh i linked you the website source , no offense but its written there also i hate crypto so maybe thats why i am picking up on those guys specifically i guess

      • Gordon_F@lemmy.mlOPEnglish
        1·
        4 months ago

        jami’s good but it uses turn server to verify your name

        So is it secure ? does that mean you rely on those server to be able to created an account ?

  • Gordon_F@lemmy.mlOPEnglish
    1·
    4 months ago

    A little update.

    I’ve just tested simplex on Android.

    it’s very well thought out ! The features make sense. UNFORTUNATELY it’s not P2P ! all the messages pass by their servers :'( with Briar it’s P2P… weirdly they claim their way is better than P2P ! any comment on that ?

    In my point of view, if messages are stored somewhere it’s mean the can be process[1] !

    Cheers.

    edit: lemmy link to their community !simplex@lemmy.ml

    1. Copied, analyzed, cracked (Brut force or what ever) ↩︎

    • Gordon_F@lemmy.mlOPEnglish
      0·
      7 months ago

      no ! thanks ! look promising too.

      I’ll try it and give my review… but is it require to make a “jami” account on their server !??

      • banazir@lemmy.ml
        0·
        7 months ago

        As I understand it, the account is on your machine only. If you delete your profile, it’s gone, unless you made backups. But I may be mistaken.

        • Gordon_F@lemmy.mlOPEnglish
          2·
          4 months ago

          I think your mistaken… Can someone confirm ?

          So I was eager to test Jami, but on Windows it require Windows 10… so no way --> https://itvision.altervista.org/why-windows-10-sucks.html

          anyway I gave a quick try on a test machine (win10) But I got , not matter what I entered

          Too bad because it had on paper, a lot of nice features…

          On linux, too bad they don’t provide (yet) an AppImage…

  • Skull giver@popplesburger.hilciferous.nl
    1·
    7 months ago

    It’s been stuck in “coming soon” hell for ages, but VeilidChat may be of interest to you.

    TorChat is rather clunky, but any privacy respecting chat app without an intermediate server will be. Is a bit like Tor but with some improvements, so running a chat protocol on top of it should work better.

    Note that there is an app called “veilid chat” out there that doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the people writing code on the Veilid network.