Everyone knows that WhatsApp conversations are protected with end-to-end encryption. But this is not enough to prevent our privacy is compromised, since as is well known, WhatsApp will start showing ads very soon. All this without taking into account all the personal information that the app can store and share with Facebook.
Data mining is a very juicy source of income like to let it pass just like that. Since the founders of WhatsApp left the company "for ethical reasons", Facebook has not stopped pointing in this direction in order to monetize an application that, no matter how much they paint it differently, is still economically deficient.
The best secure messaging apps: 10 alternatives to WhatsApp that do respect the privacy of their users
Let us remember that WhatsApp has billions of users, and surely the maintenance of its servers should not be cheap precisely! Next, we present 10 secure messaging apps superior to WhatsApp, at least when it comes to privacy.
Telegram
Telegram is probably the most powerful alternative to WhatsApp that we can find today. For starters, it offers very similar functions, such as integrated voice and video calls, as well as stickers, emojis, bots, group chats and the famous Telegram channels.
But Telegram is not just a mobile app: it is also available in a desktop version for Windows, Linux and Mac, and it even has a web version for browsers. Of course, it offers end-to-end encryption and respects your privacy as it cannot be otherwise.
Related: 10 Reasons You Should Go Telegram Right Now
Download QR-Code Telegram Developer: Telegram FZ-LLC Price: Free 
Kik Messenger
Kik has earned a rather unfortunate reputation in recent years as an app that is used by its users for sexting, buying and selling of illegal products and all kinds of illegal activities. However, that only proves one thing, and that is a messaging platform that respects privacy like no other app on the market.
This is a completely free chat application that does not store our phone number: we only communicate by username. What's more, all messages are saved locally, in the phone's internal memory. Thus leaving the matter of privacy completely in our hands. Kik is, therefore, an application that is virtually uncontrollable by external agents. Perfect for those looking for maximum privacy.
Download QR-Code Kik Developer: Kik Interactive Price: Free 
Wire - Secure Messenger
As its name suggests, Wire is a secure messaging app. Created by Skype co-founder Janus Friis, it offers message encryption and one of the most attractive designs of recent times.
The application requires a phone number or an email to be used, but does not share it with other users, with whom we communicate only through an alias. Another advantage is that it allows you to create messages that automatically self-destruct after a certain time.
Download QR-Code Wire • Secure Messenger Developer: Wire Swiss GmbH Price: Free 
Threema
Threema is one of the most prominent secure messaging services for Android. Its philosophy is aimed at maintaining the privacy of its users:
- It is designed to store as little data as possible on its servers.
- Group and contact list subscriptions are managed locally, on the user's phone.
- Messages are immediately deleted from the server, once they have been delivered to their recipient.
- Local files in internal memory are stored encrypted.
On top of that, all communications in Threema are end-to-end encrypted, be it chats, voice calls, group chats, multimedia files, and even status messages. An excellent service, which, even being a paid app, has more than 1 million installations and one of the best ratings on Google Play on this list.
Download QR-Code Threema. Secure and private messenger Developer: Threema GmbH Price: € 3.99 Wickr Me
They say that Wickr Me is the preferred messaging app for journalists and political leaders who want to keep their private affairs private, worth the redundancy. Like WhatsApp, Wickr Me uses our phone number to log in, and it also has the classic stickers and emoticons.
But there the similarities with WhatsApp end. Wickr does not register our contact list on their servers, does not save metadata and deletes "irretrievably" our messages from its servers whenever we request it. It's free, ad-free, and offers an excellent level of encryption. What more could you want?
Download QR-Code Wickr Me - Private Messenger Developer: Wickr Inc Price: Free 
Riot.im
Riot is a communication app focused on chat rooms, group calls, and other large-scale interactions. In practice, Riot works like an excellent messaging platform with privacy as the central axis. In fact, it is an open source application, which means that it is always being improved for maximum security.
Your best assets in favor of privacy:
- It is not necessary to associate a phone number to use it.
- End-to-end encryption.
- Control over the messages that can and cannot be seen by new users entering the chat rooms.
- It is based on the Matrix protocol, which has an excellent reputation as a secure communication platform.
At the interface level, it has a certain air to WhatsApp, which will make us not notice too much change if we decide to abandon WhatsApp and make the leap to Riot.
Download QR-Code Element Secure Messenger (Riot im) Developer: Vector Creations Limited Price: Free 
Signal
Singal is a kind of open source clone based on Telegram, therefore, we will see several similarities between both apps. It offers private communication based on our phone number, although it is used only as a user identifier.
With Signal we can create groups, send mass messages and, ultimately, more or less the same as with Telegram, but from a more open perspective, since allows anyone to verify its security by auditing the code.
Download QR-Code Signal - Private Messaging Developer: Signal Foundation Price: Free 
Anthox
Antox is a secure messaging app that uses the Tox protocol, which is Peer to Peer (P2P), to chat with other people. A good way to make sure that no one overhears our conversations.
The only "downside" we can find is that it is an application that is still in beta. In any case, although it is still under development, it is a good alternative to WhatsApp if what we are looking for is a much higher privacy.
Download QR-Code Antox Developer: The Tox Project Price: Free 
Kontalk
Kontalk is another secure messaging app, which in this case is based on the open standards XMPP and OpenPGP, which means that we can use our own server.
It uses end-to-end encryption, with an encryption method that is irreversible. It is also free, open source, and its source code is available on Github, allowing you to study its security and improve it. A transparent application like few others.
Download QR-Code Kontalk Messenger Developer: Kontalk devteam Price: Free 
LINE
One of the biggest competitors of WhatsApp, and at the same time, one of the least known. LINE is an instant messaging app of Japanese origin that offers a powerful set of functionalities. Group calls, thousands of stickers (in this they are years ahead of any other similar app) and a highly customizable interface. Notably, it also consumes less data during calls. Not bad!
LINE has end-to-end encryption, and although some services need access to the contact list, or the location, for functional reasons, this is all optional. What's more, all data sent to LINE's servers is encrypted. As an extra, comment that we can also set timers to delete our messages from the LINE servers after a certain time.
Download QR-Code LINE: Call and text for free Developer: LINE Corporation Price: Free Personally, I have used LINE regularly for years, and the truth is that it is one of my favorites on an aesthetic and visual level. Do not lose sight of it!
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