Mastodawn

Find us in the Microsoft Store :)

https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/xp89119p9f2pcq?hl=en-US&gl=US

Signal Private Messenger - Download and install on Windows | Microsoft Store

Signal is a messaging app with privacy at its core. It is free and easy to use, with strong end-to-end encryption that keeps your communication completely private. • Send texts, voice messages, photos, videos, GIFs, and files for free. Signal uses your phone’s data connection, so you avoid SMS and MMS fees. • Call your friends with crystal-clear encrypted voice and video calls. Group calls supported for up to 50 people. • Stay connected with group chats up to 1,000 people. Control who can post and manage group members with admin permission settings. • Share image, text, and video Stories that disappear after 24 hours. Privacy settings keep you in charge of exactly who can see each Story. • Signal is built for your privacy. We know nothing about you or who you’re talking to. Our open source Signal Protocol means that we can’t read your messages or listen to your calls. Neither can anyone else. No back doors, no data collection, no compromises. • Signal is independent and not for profit; a different kind of tech from a different kind of organization. As a 501c3 nonprofit we are supported by your donations, not by advertisers or investors. • For support, questions, or more information please visit https://support.signal.org/ To check out our source code, visit https://github.com/signalapp Follow us on Twitter @signalapp and Instagram @signal_app

Microsoft Store - Download apps, games & more for your Windows PC

@signalapp totally sane responses incoming

@silhouette right?? i usually don't see the "people on mastodon suck" thing but there are a lot of people very detached from reality.

it sucks we live in a world where windows is the dominant desktop OS but i still want the people on that OS to be able to send me messages on signal. we have some more important things going on

Ted's Tech Tips Feb 5

@lynndotpy @silhouette 100% this 👆

Commodore1351 Feb 5

@tedstechtips @lynndotpy @silhouette The Windows version of Signal was already available at the Signal website. Yeah, I know that's not the same for those people who rely solely on app stores for whatever reasons.

Ted's Tech Tips Feb 5

@Commodore1351 @lynndotpy @silhouette There are many reasons why someone on Windows can't install a program downloaded from a website. In most cases, they either don't have the necessary user permissions or are running something like Windows S which prevents installing apps from outside of the Microsoft Store.

@Commodore1351 Well, it's been the dominant way to download software for easily over 15 years. Even people who are functionally illiterate (not just tech-illiterate, but not-proficient-in-any-written-language) use messaging apps

@lynndotpy i think it's just part of the purity spiral that the microblog format seems to encourage

@lynndotpy @silhouette correct, there I thought mastodon was an escape from the likes of say twitter but nope you got people acting like a bluesky or twitter user, I mean it is worse that they may be violating server rules saying things like “Pedo” or “Nazi” falsely (“ = quote & end quote)

@signalapp
So you made it to MS before F-Droid. This display of your priorities makes me sad 😢

Luna Lactea Feb 5

@silmaril @signalapp Signal is in the Guardian Project F-Droid repository.

🐦‍🔥nemo™🐦‍⬛ 🇺🇦🍉Feb 5

✅

@silmaril @signalapp

@jackemled
Work it with UnifiedPush of NextcloudPush?

Luna Lactea Feb 5

@rumo @signalapp Molly is a fork of the official Signal client focused on adding a few extra security features & it supports UnifiedPush or using a websocket connection instead of relying on FCM, but FCM is still an option you can choose if you want it. I don't think the official client has support for UnifiedPush or notifications through websockets.

Molly

Molly is an improved Signal app for Android

Ted's Tech Tips Feb 5

@silmaril @signalapp F-Droid has lots of issues, Signal already posts APKs directly on Github and their website. You can use Obtanium to automatically get releases.

GitHub: https://github.com/signalapp/Signal-Android/releases

Website:
https://signal.org/android/apk/

@silmaril
You can get @mollyim by adding their repo on Fdroid, it is a degoogled signal client!

Josh Wood Feb 5

@silmaril @signalapp its been available from the Guardian Project's F-Droid repo for a LONG time.

Sherlock Schaf Feb 5

M$ Store before arm64 on linux is wild. Fuck postmarketOS and raspberry pi os users I guess.

Ted's Tech Tips Feb 5

@schtick2940 @signalapp Releasing on Microsoft Store is important for Windows users who can't otherwise install programs on their computers due to various restrictions (not Admin, Windows S mode, etc).

Signal is already working on improving its Linux support.

I don't see a purpose in using an E2EE messaging service on a device that is taking a screenshot every 30 seconds to send to their AI database.

Ted's Tech Tips Feb 5

@schtick2940 @signalapp Signal Desktop already blocks Microsoft Recall:

https://signal.org/blog/signal-doesnt-recall/

Obviously using Windows isn't great for your privacy, but Signal needs to be available on mainstream platforms so that everyone has access to secure comms. What good is a messaging app that isn't available on the second most popular operating system in the world (Windows)?

By Default, Signal Doesn't Recall

Signal Desktop now includes support for a new “Screen security” setting that is designed to help prevent your own computer from capturing screenshots of your Signal chats on Windows. This setting is automatically enabled by default in Signal Desktop on Windows 11. If you’re wondering why we’re on...

Signal Messenger

Signal was already available via the msi installer, and supporting Microsofts continuing crusade to try and lock down Windows in a similar way to what Google is doing with Android is not a good look to me. I feel if an org wanted to use Signal (in your non-admin example) they should have an IT person smart enough to know how to provision their devices with it. If a tech illiterate person is using Windows S mode, an application being made unavailable may prompt their journey into escaping the abusive M$ system. That's how I ended up on Linux, I got tired of my system spying on me and the OS itself being unstable on my system.

I understand where you are coming from, but I think Signal had bigger fish to fry before doing this. (Another reply pointed out that Signal still isn't being built on F-Droid for example.)

Ted's Tech Tips Feb 5

@schtick2940 @signalapp The simple fact is that most people, especially those not familiar with tech, are going to search for apps in the Microsoft Store. Signal being available there instead of making users disable system security features significantly lowers the barrier to entry.

As for F-Droid, it some problems that can't easily be solved. Signal already publishes up-to-date APKs on Github and their website for anyone who wishes not to download from Google Play.

@schtick2940 @tedstechtips @signalapp yes either that or make it a paid product on proprietary platforms

@schtick2940 @signalapp not even Flathub, official version I mean.

Centi Quetzal Feb 5

@signalapp how about you decentralize

@signalapp "Capitalists preferring profit over ethics" - surprise surprise

Fell for it again award

Ted's Tech Tips Feb 5

@clot27 @signalapp Releasing on the Microsoft Store is important for Windows users who can't otherwise install programs on their computers due to various restrictions (not admin, Windows S mode, etc).

@tedstechtips @signalapp why isnt signal on fdroid again?

Ted's Tech Tips Feb 5

@clot27 @signalapp I don't believe they've made an official statement about F-Droid availability, but generally F-Droid is considered to not be very secure.

See: https://www.privacyguides.org/en/android/obtaining-apps/#f-droid

Obtaining Applications - Privacy Guides

We recommend these methods for obtaining applications on Android without interacting with Google Play Services.

Privacy Guides

Mr. Beedell, Roke (RJLB)Feb 5

@tedstechtips, considering your choice of source, please read ⋛ https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/the-anti-f-droid-take-is-uninformed/20439/12.

The anti-f-droid take is uninformed

It’s not true that it just relies on badness enumeration. The list of external sources that you can pull from during build for example, is white listed… fdroidserver/scanner.py · master · F-Droid / fdroidserver · GitLab There are checks for example that ensure you’re not stuffing Zip files with improper extensions into your APK, fdroidserver/scanner.py · master · F-Droid / fdroidserver · GitLab The extensions that are acceptable for the zip mimetype, are whitelisted: .zip. No one is arguing t...

Privacy Guides Community

@rokejulianlockhart @tedstechtips
the advise still stands, use f-droid as a last resort or rely less on the official f-droid repo, it is bad that every app on the official f-droid repo is signed by the f-droid keys that one compromise can cause chaos.

Mr. Beedell, Roke (RJLB)Feb 6

@gorujocy, https://gitlab.com/fdroid/fdroid-website/-/blob/874c7089988cc3d59806f8d0acb3a12d431a2c12/_posts/2023-09-03-reproducible-builds-signing-keys-and-binary-repos.md#:~:text=changes%2E%20Learn%20more%2E-,2023%2D09%2D03%2Dreproducible%2Dbuilds%2Dsigning%2Dkeys%2Dand%2Dbinary%2Drepos%2Emd,-12%2E29%20KiB should dissuade you of that being a problem.

Both signing methods are utilised by those Linux-based OSes that support a native package manager alongside Flatpak, and I see few complain. That F-Droid provides both methods appears to be a novel improvement.

_posts/2023-09-03-reproducible-builds-signing-keys-and-binary-repos.md · 874c7089988cc3d59806f8d0acb3a12d431a2c12 · F-Droid / Website · GitLab

Jekyll page to power https://f-droid.org, staging at https://staging.f-droid.org/

GitLab

Josh Wood Feb 5

@tedstechtips @clot27 @signalapp It's in the Guardian Project's repo for a while.

@clot27 @tedstechtips @signalapp it used to be on Guardian Project repo of F-Droid but idk now it seems to be getting 404, weird because forums corroborate this
https://guardianproject.info/apps/org.thoughtcrime.securesms/
so idk what signal is doing, it was here now it was gone

Signal Private Messenger

Say "hello" to privacy.

Guardian Project

@signalapp wtf is with these comments

Goldmaster Feb 5

Well, Dude,
we just don't Know.

@alreadydeadxd @signalapp yeah someone’s being delusional or rather very twitter user like. They should go back to bluesky or twitter ngl.
spreading that to another clueless user is also worse
I just reported, muted and blocked the target.

@signalapp
Why?

Ted's Tech Tips Feb 5

@tomarsch @signalapp Releasing on the Microsoft Store is important for Windows users who can't otherwise install programs on their computers due to various restrictions (use permissions, Windows S mode, etc).

@tedstechtips
Well, that's not necessarily true, because the MS Store can also be restricted in the normal way. Apart from that, the desktop version is fundamentally more vulnerable than the native app, which is not based on WebView. So why put yourself in harm's way?
@signalapp

@signalapp
WTF?
#kuketzblog #unplugUSA

G 🇮🇹Feb 5

@signalapp I'm fine thanks, I got it from your website years ago and still using it 🙂

@signalapp how about an app for Linux phones that doesn't assume previous iPhone/Android?? 🙏 #postmarketos

Mr. Beedell, Roke (RJLB)Feb 5

@joeld, you should post a suggestion at their Discourse instance. I'll support it, if you link it here.

@rokejulianlockhart
Not that they’d care, though.

Even understandable in this case, although them being systemically disinterested in cooperating with third-party client devs in any way (like refusing UnifiedPush) is a real problem.

Them not actively cracking down on third-party clients like WhatsApp does, is hardly worth praising – that’s just basic decency, really.

(WhisperFish exists though – it’s SailfishOS, rather than PostmarketOS though, but they are open to people doing a port.)
@joeld

Mr. Beedell, Roke (RJLB)Feb 5

> Even understandable in this case, although them being systemically disinterested in cooperating with third-party client devs in any way (like refusing UnifiedPush) is a real problem.

@curiousicae, you may consider what is cited at ≤ https://github.com/UnifiedPush/wishlist/issues/8#issuecomment-1343328837 to be useful for you.

> WhisperFish exists though – it’s SailfishOS, rather than PostmarketOS

Per https://wiki.postmarketos.org/index.php?title=Flatpak&oldid=70079#top:~:text=postmarketOS%20supports%20installing%20Flatpaks, https://github.com/flathub/org.signal.Signal/blob/cc986ac10d9645a9c7937a073ba58286e36fd629/README.md?plain=1#L12C1-L12C42:~:text=flatpak%20install%20flathub%20org%2Esignal%2ESignal may be of use to you.

Signal · Issue #8 · UnifiedPush/wishlist

An discussion is already here: https://community.signalusers.org/t/use-gcm-fcm-alternatives-for-notifications/10264

GitHub

@rokejulianlockhart
I know about Molly and MollySocket, including the fact that one needs to run the run their own 24/7 service for that kinda defeats the purpose. While adding support for UnifiedPush in the Signal service would be ~30 lines of code and massively simplify backgrounding on alternative mobile clients. My point here was about a social, not a technical problem.

I’m also on SailfishOS which has Whisperfish (nor does it really do Flatpak). I was just pointing out that if your hoping for a native client on PostmarketOS, helping porting Whisperfish is your best bet. Don’t hold your breath for Signal devs to do anything there, unless PMOS gets like 10+% global market share.

Mr. Beedell, Roke (RJLB)Feb 5

> if your hoping for a native client on PostmarketOS, helping porting Whisperfish is your best bet

@curiousicae, I'm not. My FP4 and FP5 can cope with WayDroid, and the AOSP client provides a sufficiently touch-optimised interface.

However, if performance were a consideration, or Flatpak's sandbox were too painful, I would merely install a native CI build — like https://github.com/signalapp/Signal-Desktop/issues/4530#issuecomment-3857041713 — in Distrobox, because GLibC isn't a ridiculous abstraction by comparison.

Tobias Frisch Feb 5

@joeld @signalapp You could try Flare which is using a reimplementation of the Signal protocol in Rust. It's compatible with the official Signal servers though.

https://flathub.org/en/apps/de.schmidhuberj.Flare

Install Flare on Linux | Flathub

Chat with your friends on Signal

@thejackimonster @joeld @signalapp
at this point I’d install the unofficial flatpak than this. Third party clients with the exception of molly is not recommended

Tobias Frisch Feb 6

@gorujocy @joeld @signalapp I had way more issues with the unofficial flatpak of the original Signal client than with Flare. Personally I am much disappointed by Signal in general.

Because you can't even run a desktop client without having some mobile client (typically Android) somewhere. So essentially Signal locks you into Google's or Apple's ecosystem for no real reason.

Wasted Radiance Feb 5

It seems the replies are mostly criticism, which I understand, but look at it this way: there's yet another way to install Signal, one that's well supported within Microsoft's ecosystem.

Updating through infrastructure that's as trusted as your OS is a good thing. Look at what happened with notepadnotepad++:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZAKvsIfxrs

The Notepad++ Situation Is Crazy

YouTube

Wachoperro Feb 6

@WastedRadiance
Notepad++ didn't check the integrity of the update package, that was a security-101-first-lesson problem, solved without needing to introduce an appstore

But disregarding if that threat vector is a problem for Signal or not, if people don't trust the Microslop Store, they shouldn't be using Windows anyway! It's not like they'll have exposure to _more_ threat actors, just more threat vectors for the same one

@WastedRadiance
Thanks, I already thought about writing something similar... a lot of harsh reactions for a good news!

@signalapp like building a brick house on sand lol. But fr glad to see more people using signal

@signalapp nice to make Signal available on more AppStore! Thanks!

Scrutinizer Feb 5

@signalapp Make a native Win32 desktop app and get rid of this Electron abomination.

katzenberger Feb 5

😉