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Whatsapp Or Signal/Telegram? The New-Age Of Messaging Are Signal or Telegram good enough to uninstall WhatsApp? We find out answers

By Shivang Saxena

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

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WhatsApp has been experiencing a lot of heat since releasing the latest privacy policy updates. The Facebook-owned company has been pushed back by many users with privacy issues, and people are looking for other ways to WhatsApp. Are Signal and Telegram good enough to uninstall WhatsApp? We find out.

WhatsApp has updated its privacy policy, which allows other Facebook-controlled companies to access WhatsApp user data.

Adopting the new policy

Should you accept the new policy? That is up to you, and it can be very frustrating if you live outside the European Union or the UK. It may be that the data sharing that worries you, or that you may be too tired for your data to be shared or sold for the benefit of big companies like Facebook.

While Facebook has always been skeptical of user data misuse, the new WhatsApp privacy policies raise many questions about its security and data privacy. While some WhatsApp apps are preferred for better security, are they fit enough for your daily social messaging app?

Both the Telegram and the new Signal (approved by the richest man in the world, Elon Musk) are considered the best, given WhatsApp methods and the security features offered.

Is the Signal App better than WhatsApp?

Unlike WhatsApp, Signal has the option of writing a "note to him" rather than having a one-on-one group to send notes. Users can also use the "note to self" feature while chatting with other groups. Apart from this, the Signal app also allows users to transfer their voice calls to the app's servers to hide their contacts' identity. Apart from this, Signal also collects much lower user information compared with WhatsApp. When WhatsApp collects a large amount of data including device ID, user ID, phone number, email address, contacts, advertising data and payment details, Signal only collects user phone numbers.

Is the Signal App completely safe?

Signal has quickly become the most downloaded app on the Apple App Store. It uses the open-source Signal Protocol to use end-to-end encryption. End-to-end encryption to encompass all types of communication like WhatsApp. Going one step ahead, this application continues and encrypts user metadata. To protect user data, Signal has a "sender" feature in which no one will be able to detect who is sending and receiving messages. This application encrypts all files with a four-digit login, and users can also get a local backup. This application also encrypts group calls.

With Signal, you have no private conversations, but instead, you can open disappearing messages and set a time when the news will disappear. Notifications can be passed on to others even if the disappearing message feature is turned on in Signal.

Stickers: You don't get animated stickers on Signal, but you can still send your stickers with standard emoji.

Polls: No voting features available on Signal or WhatsApp yet.

So if you choose any of these messaging apps, do figure your priorities and their functionality beforehand. Messaging today has become very much part of our lives and thus deserves the best of user experience always.

Shivang Saxena

Freelance writer

Shivang Saxena is a New Delhi-based writer-entrepreneur. Reading, writing & entrepreneur-ing always. He's the founder of The Words Vibe. A platform for newbie writers to hone their skills. He's also working with his first book called, "Too Many Thoughts, Too Many People" which is due to get published by end of 2021. 

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