Meredith WhittakerJun 16, 2025
Use Signal. We promise, no AI clutter, and no surveillance ads, whatever the rest of the industry does. <3
Show threadKevin Karhan Oct 14, 2025

@Mer__edith except @signalapp does collect #PII (#Phonenumbers) and demand it alongside camera access to even use it.

  • Compare that to @monocles / #monoclesChat and @delta / #deltaChat, which don't demand any personal data nor permissions (beyond internet access and being able to store the login details, obviously!), this is absolutely unreasonable.

Plus unlike #Signal, both offer #realE2EE with #SelfCustody of all the Keys, support @torproject / #Tor for #privacy and don't rely on "Trust me, guys!" advertising and a long-term unsustainable model of donations from billionaires and millionaires to keep running!

Kevin Karhan :verified: (@[email protected])

My [reservations](https://infosec.space/@kkarhan/114234551915193036) and [criticism](https://infosec.space/@kkarhan/114862595629371002) re: #Signal are not just valid, but the reality is *even worse than I thought*: - The fact that @[email protected] requires not only their shitty #Android #App, and a #PhoneNumber but literally won't allow people to use their shitty #Desktop-App unless they have an Android device with a camera pointed at it makes it utterly unuseable for certain users *who don't have a fucking #camera in their Android*… Seriously, do they expect folks to deal with that shit? - It's already worse in terms of #UX than #telegram and #discord and that too makes #XMPP+#OMEMO clients like @[email protected] / #monoclesChat & @[email protected] / #gajim easier and faster to onboard #TechIlliterates onto. - Whichever asshole decided that a *replacement for #SMS* should mandate #PII like a #PhoneNumber & not be natively cross-platform should be banned from doing any #tech in their life. Trying to circumvent this shit and helping folks with it makes me so fucking angry that I'm now explicitly refusing to support it! FIX THAT SHIT, @[email protected], and if it means you need to kick some devs in their crouch then consider this a necessary *"investment"*… #sarcasm #TechSupport #TalesFromTechSupport #Enshittification #SignalSucks #TelegramSucks #Messengers

Infosec.Space
Show threadKevin Karhan Oct 14, 2025

@lucasmz the preference of #IPv4 is not due to @monocles but rather #DNS resolution on #Android and #iOS.

  • #IPv6 sadly isn't as prevalent or compatible...

As for @signalapp / #Signal, you don't gelt #SelfCustody, you don't even get #SelfHosting or #VerifyableBuilds! (compared to #MonoclesChat on @fdroidorg / #Fdroid... )

Kevin Karhan :verified: (@[email protected])

My [reservations](https://infosec.space/@kkarhan/114234551915193036) and [criticism](https://infosec.space/@kkarhan/114862595629371002) re: #Signal are not just valid, but the reality is *even worse than I thought*: - The fact that @[email protected] requires not only their shitty #Android #App, and a #PhoneNumber but literally won't allow people to use their shitty #Desktop-App unless they have an Android device with a camera pointed at it makes it utterly unuseable for certain users *who don't have a fucking #camera in their Android*… Seriously, do they expect folks to deal with that shit? - It's already worse in terms of #UX than #telegram and #discord and that too makes #XMPP+#OMEMO clients like @[email protected] / #monoclesChat & @[email protected] / #gajim easier and faster to onboard #TechIlliterates onto. - Whichever asshole decided that a *replacement for #SMS* should mandate #PII like a #PhoneNumber & not be natively cross-platform should be banned from doing any #tech in their life. Trying to circumvent this shit and helping folks with it makes me so fucking angry that I'm now explicitly refusing to support it! FIX THAT SHIT, @[email protected], and if it means you need to kick some devs in their crouch then consider this a necessary *"investment"*… #sarcasm #TechSupport #TalesFromTechSupport #Enshittification #SignalSucks #TelegramSucks #Messengers

Infosec.Space
Show threadKevin Karhan 

@lucasmz @fdroidorg @torproject

Let's just say @signalapp / #Signal is so good, it scratches that part of my mind that doesn't allow good to exist without precondition...

But maybe that's just me flexing life experience and the fact that my paranoia always turned out to be justified.

Given they offer their Services to people in #Russia, #Cuba and #Iran, thus being in clonflict with #ITAR, I'm pretty much convinced they had to have a deal with the U.S. Government to get that done.

So yeah, there will be some #LawfulInterception doodat and even if it's not within Signal's infrastructure, I'd call the #NSA "criminally stupid" if they didn't intercept all the "Verification #SMS" and all the data from and to Signal's Systems routinely to #BULLRUN against it...

Elliot Hacks A Pedophile | Mr. Robot

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Oct 14, 2025 at 10:49amWeb