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Viber Update Brings End-To-End Encryption and Hidden Chats (gsmarena.com)
An anonymous reader writes: The new hip thing to do if you're a developer of a messaging app is to encrypt everyone's messages -- everyone's doing it! WhatsApp announced earlier this month all messages being sent through the service will now be end-to-end encrypted. Today, Viber has announcd it is doing something similar. All messages being sent through the latest version of the app will be end-to-end encrypted. To confirm messages are being encrypted, a padlock icon will appear in the chat UI. The latest version of the app is already available in the iOS App Store and Android Google Play Store. Viber is one of the largest messaging platforms with over 700 million users. Hidden chats can also be found in the new update. Users can hide select chats with people and access/display them with a PIN or Touch ID.
I wonder which of them will be the first to open up their implementation to scrutiny?
Showing us a nice little padlock icon is all very well, but encryption is *hard*, and getting it right is subtle.
An assurance that they cannot access any of the data themselves would be a start, because it points
to true end-to-end (rather than end-to-middleman, which is much less useful...)
If you can access your messages from more than one device, then it is a sign that all is not well in paradise,
as they may hold the keys themselves (in which case what is the point), but not necessarily.
If trust is part of security, then do you trust the security? ;)