Woefdram2d ago

Belgium is the next European country to take communication between public workers into its own hands. No more WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger, it's Beam from now on.

*Beam has been developed by the state-backed company Belgian Secure Communications (BSC). It will eventually be used by around 750,000 public sector employees and military personnel.*

https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/en/2026/03/18/new-app-provides-secure-messaging-service-for-public-sector-empl/

#DigitalAutonomy #BigTech #SecureCommunication #Matrix

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New app provides secure messaging service for public sector employees | VRT NWS: news

Belgium has started rolling out a new secure messaging application. The app that is called Beam will replace messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger for official use by public sector workers.

VRT NWS
Show threadWoefdram2d ago

It should come as no surprise that Beam is based on Matrix.

France and Germany have set a good example, France has TChap, Germany uses BwMessenger and TI-Messenger, all based on Matrix.

Let's hope all other a European countries and the EU itself will follow these examples, fast...

https://beam.belgium.be/en/

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#DigitalAutonomy #BigTech #SecureCommunication #Matrix

BEAM – Secure messaging for Belgian public services

Secure and end-to-end encrypted messaging platform, specifically designed for Belgian government employees and public sector organizations.

BEAM
Show threadTimothy Roes23h ago
@hans Hope this will make it easier for me to convince people to reach me on #Matrix as well
Show threadWoefdram23h ago

@TimothyRoes That's what I hope too.

I've been trying to convince people to use #Matrix since 2018, with limited success, but news like this should give us extra leverage 😎

Show threadTimothy Roes23h ago
@hans Desperate times call for desperate measures, my colleague promised all of our team a big cake if they ditch our office #WhatsApp group for the new #Matrix group. A mere 3 Luddites stand between us and that cake!
Show threadWoefdram

@TimothyRoes What's their biggest problem? "It's too complicated"? "Not yet another chat app"?

Onboarding is a key component, which requires a nicely configured server and Luddite-friendly documentation.

The latter is a lot more work than the former...

Apr 14 at 1:11pmWeb
Show threadTimothy Roes22h ago
@hans Just a lack of enthusiasm to try out new tech when the old does its job just fine. To illustrate: my direct colleague has had a shiny new laptop sitting in its box on her desk for 3 months now, but hasn't opened it yet.
Show threadWoefdram22h ago

@TimothyRoes Ouch, difficult for me to understand that, I'd rip that box open as soon as it's delivered.

Tricky to get the uninterested on board. Mayby some subtle coercion by only sharing the fun stuff on #Matrix, and laughing loudly when a new message arrives..?

But you work in law, maybe that classic Monty Python sketch holds some truth? 😇

Show threadTimothy Roes22h ago
@hans Hahaha touché! I'll have to practice laughing loudly at something and, when asked, say "Oh you just had to be there... in the Matrix chat" #fomo
Show threadWoefdram22h ago

@TimothyRoes I have more or less blackmailed people to join, simply by leaving #WhatApp long ago. When Suckerberg bought it, that was my cue.

At that time they had the choice to keep in contact via Signal, SMS or e-mail, or not at all. I lost many connections there, but not the really important ones: the people that found it worthwhile to keep in touch.

Matrix is trickier, especially if you already "forced" people to Signal before...

But then, news items about governments starting to use #Matrix should help people understand that maybe it's the future.