Six questions for any messenger.
- Always end-to-end encrypted Only you and the people you message can read your messages, not the provider. This should apply automatically, including in groups and for photos.
- Knowing little about you Even without content, who writes to whom and when reveals a lot. A good messenger stores as little of that as possible.
- No phone number or address book If the app needs your number or uploads your address book, it also passes on data of people who never agreed to it.
- A clear origin Where is the provider based, where are the servers and which law applies? In the EU, the General Data Protection Regulation applies.
- An honest business model If the app costs nothing, it is worth asking how it makes money. Advertising and data are not good answers.
- When something fails If everything runs through a single provider, everything stops when there is an outage. Several paths make you more independent.
And what about everyone else?
The most secure messenger is of little use if nobody in your family uses it. You don’t have to switch everything at once. Start with the circle that matters most to you, for example your family, and bring the others along over time.
How anynear answers these questions.
Messages, files and passwords are always end-to-end encrypted, and only you hold the keys. You need neither a phone number nor an account, and anynear does not upload your address book. The encrypted content is spread across several locations in Europe that stand in for each other. With a radio, short messages even work without internet. anynear is meant to be funded by optional subscriptions, and there is no advertising. What is stored where?
To be honest
anynear is still in beta. For very important matters, it is best to use a second channel as well until everything has been proven.