One feature of a truly secure messaging app is end-to-end encryption. This means messages are encrypted on the sender’s device and only recipient. They are between the companies running the messaging service to access the contents of the messages. Legitimate secure messaging apps transparent information about their encryption protocols. They should specify that they use end-to-end encryption and may provide additional technical details about the encryption algorithms and methods used. 

If an app is vague or avoids discussing the specifics of its encryption, that’s a red flag. A lack of transparency around encryption likely means the app is less secure than it claims to be. In the worst case, it could be a honeypot that doesn’t encrypt data.

Way to verify contact identity

The aspect of a secure messaging app is the ability to verify the identity of the people you are communicating with. After all, encryption only does a little good if you be sure you’re talking to who you think you are. Secure messaging apps should provide a way to compare critical fingerprints or scan QR codes to verify contacts. Some apps, like Signal, even display indicators if a contact’s identity fundamental changes, alerting you to potential impersonation attempts. If a messaging app lacks features for contact verification, be very wary. You could easily be tricked into sharing sensitive information with an attacker via the app without to authenticate contacts have a peek here

Closed-source code

The source code is essentially the blueprint of an app. That blueprint is available for anyone to examine with open-source secure messaging apps. This allows security researchers and the app’s user community to audit the code and verify that the encryption works as claimed. There are no backdoors or vulnerabilities that could be exploited. If the source code for a secure messaging app is not publicly available, that’s concerning. There’s no way to verify that the app is doing what it says and not hiding malicious functionality. e apps are much more likely to be honeypots or have security flaws.

Requires Excessive Permissions

When you install an app, you’ll usually be asked to grant it specific permissions, like access to your contacts, microphone, or location. A secure messaging app shouldn’t need any more permissions than necessary for its core functions. If a messaging app is requesting excessive or unnecessary permissions, that should raise some alarms. For example, an app that wants to access your location could be designed to track your physical movements. Asking for permissions like access to your social media accounts is also questionable for a messaging app.

Be cautious of any messaging app that wants more access to your device and data than it should reasonably require. Honeypot apps often seek broad permissions to vacuum up as much data as possible.

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If a secure messaging app doesn’t offer multi-device support, it likely means one of two things. Either the app’s developers lack the technical capabilities to implement multi-device functionality in a secure way (which doesn’t inspire confidence in the rest of the app’s security), or they don’t care about providing a good user experience (which also doesn’t bode well for the app’s integrity).