Communication Privacy, Part I

There are probably a couple of articles I can write about current secure methods of communication. Here’s the first of them.

Inherent to the field of computer security is the privacy of telecommunications. On one side of the spectrum we have a hacked computer that has been subverted and it’s easy to access by unauthorized personnel in order to guess email passwords, past messages, contacts, etc. What’s on the other side of the spectrum?

When it comes to instant messaging: Wickr. What in heavens is Wickr?

At the expense of sounding like this is a commercial (it’s not, and it’s impossible to buy a good or bad review from me about a program or device), Wickr is currently my best answer to instant messaging privacy. It’s a program or application that allows for back and forth messaging at a secure level. I’ve been using it in my phone for some time now, from when it was in Beta testing (very early stages) last year. But recently the developers have expanded the type of devices it can be installed in, to include Windows based computers (Windows 7 and above), so I figured now I can write about it.

Why is it on the other side of the security spectrum?

Wickr uses encryption of the highest level and implemented in such a way that only the chosen, authorized devices possess the ability to decrypt the messages, true end-to-end encryption with no middle man. It also provides the ability to set how long a message sent will remain in the receiver’s screen before it’s deleted forever.

I don’t want to go into a lot of data about it because there’s plenty in the Wickr website, so for more information visit the link I just gave you and study the data for yourself. Warning: Prepare to look up a word or two if you go into the details of how it all works.

Stay tuned for my next article, where I’ll tackle the most secure email system I’ve found to date.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *