Tech entrepreneur and billionaire Elon Musk is ready to launch a standalone messaging app known as “X Chat” to compete with Telegram and WhatsApp, with a rollout anticipated throughout the subsequent few months.
“On X, we simply rebuilt your entire messaging stack into what’s known as ‘X Chat,’” stated Musk throughout The Joe Rogan Expertise podcast, which aired on Friday.
“It’s utilizing a peer-to-peer-based encryption system, type of just like Bitcoin. It’s superb encryption; we’re testing it completely.”
Musk stated he hopes the brand new messaging app shall be launched in a “few months,” including it received’t have any “hooks for promoting” as he pointed to opponents like WhatsApp, which “is aware of sufficient about what you’re texting to know what advertisements to indicate you,” he stated.
“However then, that’s an enormous safety vulnerability as a result of if it is aware of sufficient info to indicate you advertisements, that’s plenty of info,” he stated, including that hackers might use those self same “hooks” to learn non-public messages.
Does WhatsApp learn your messages?
WhatsApp’s guardian firm, Meta, claims it doesn’t have entry to non-public messages, explaining in its FAQ that messages between persons are end-to-end encrypted utilizing the Sign Protocol. This additionally covers voice messages, media and paperwork.
Nonetheless, it’s understood that “metadata,” resembling who you chatted with and the way typically you speak with them, shouldn’t be encrypted. WhatsApp additionally doesn’t mechanically encrypt backup copies of your chat historical past.
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WhatsApp’s FAQ part on “Does WhatsApp gather or promote your information?” skirts answering the latter a part of the query, solely explaining that “we work with different Meta Firms to assist present, enhance and help one another’s providers.”
“For those who select to combine your WhatsApp expertise with different Meta merchandise, we’ll share some info with Meta to make this doable.”
X Chat received’t have these hooks, says Musk
Musk promised that X Chat received’t have these promoting “hooks.”
“I’m not saying it’s excellent, however our purpose with X chat is to switch what was once the Twitter DM stack with a completely encrypted system the place you possibly can textual content, ship information, do audio video calls, and I feel it is going to be the least insecure of any messaging system.”
He added that the messaging app shall be obtainable as a part of the X platform and as its personal standalone app.
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