Social messaging apps frequently dominate headlines—not just for their role in illegal activities, but also for their handling of user privacy concerns. Companies like Meta, which owns popular platforms such as WhatsApp, Instagram, and Messenger, often face scrutiny regarding data management practices.
Significantly, the use of the Signal app by members of former President Trump’s cabinet to coordinate military actions in Yemen ignited discussions surrounding national security and the reliability of encrypted messaging platforms. This incident brought forward questioning of whether high-ranking officials should be utilizing services designed for privacy in matters concerning classified information.
In a recent controversial move, Apple decided to cease offering end-to-end encrypted (E2EE) cloud storage in the UK, opting instead to reject the creation of a backdoor for government access to user data. This action raised eyebrows, underscoring the power tech companies wield in arbiting user privacy without substantial oversight.
On Episode 58 of The Agenda podcast, hosts Ray Salmond and Jonathan DeYoung engaged in a thought-provoking conversation with Sessions technical co-founder Kee Jefferys, exploring how decentralized, encrypted messaging applications like Session strive to safeguard users’ privacy.
Decentralization: A Necessary Evolution
Every time a user downloads a messaging app, they often permit the operator to access sensitive information, including location data, contact lists, and conversation records. Responses from app operators promising not to misuse such data become questionable should they maintain user data on centralized servers, which remain vulnerable to cyberattacks.
Addressing Apple’s recent decision to stop E2EE rather than facilitate government intrusion, Jefferys remarked that such instances are not isolated. Countries are increasingly advocating for backdoors into applications, while developers of open-source technologies may find themselves targeted. For example, the arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Durov in France accentuates the growing risks posed to developers whose applications could be misused for malign purposes.
“I mean, obviously, we saw this with Durov, the founder of Telegram, being arrested in France. Even though he himself didn’t do anything wrong, because Telegram was being used for malicious acts, the French government felt empowered to arrest the founder, even though all of the Telegram code is open source. So, that’s really concerning from my perspective,” Jefferys voiced.
Moreover, the threat of malicious attacks looms large over both users and their chosen messaging applications. Jefferys pointed out that messages on Session are secured through E2EE and that the platform employs Onion routing to anonymize user IP addresses, offering a degree of protection against intrusion.
“In Session, you don’t reveal your IP address to the nodes that you store your messages on, and then it’s decentralized as well. So it doesn’t have a single central server where all of the messages are stored. It actually has this decentralized network of around 2,200 nodes,” he stated, highlighting the platform’s resilience against censorship and its ability to protect user metadata.
When asked what everyday users can do to enhance their privacy, Jefferys provided straightforward recommendations. He emphasized the importance of cleaning up one’s social media footprint, advising people to review and remove historically public posts that could be leveraged by AI tools to profile them.
“Making sure that your social media footprint is as clean as possible is paramount. Go through old social media posts and eliminate anything that’s accessible publicly, as these could help shape profiles and assumptions about your preferences,” he cautioned.
To gain further insights from Kee Jefferys on both modern challenges in privacy and the future of blockchain-based messaging applications, catch the complete discussion on The Agenda podcast through various platforms, including [Cointelegraph’s Podcasts page](https://ift.tt/e7uPBOy), [Apple Podcasts](https://ift.tt/StGb102), or [Spotify](https://ift.tt/h6TEZwx).
In summary, as privacy becomes increasingly compromised in the digital age, the responsibility falls on users to enhance their own security practices while advocating for better data protection measures from the platforms they rely on.
This article serves as general information and is not intended to provide legal or investment advice. The views expressed herein are solely the author’s and do not necessarily reflect those of Cointelegraph.
