Edit - y’all are awesome! I’m gonna check out all of these - thank you!!

–

A family member is moving out of country and convinced the best way to keep in touch is with WhatsApp. I really don’t want to install any Meta shit on my phone.

Any recommendation for a FOSS or other alternative from a company that’s less of an ethical dumpster fire?

  • HotCoffee@lemm.ee
    1·
    3 hours ago

    SimpleX Chat, no phone number or e-mail registration needed. Truly a privacy pioneer.

  • fmstrat@lemmy.nowsci.comEnglish
    15·
    7 hours ago

    As is the highest up vote, Signal. However, if you refuse to install WA (you should) and they refuse to install Signal (scold them for being dumb), a backup is to bridge WhatsApp with Matrix and use Element on your phone. Way more complicated than Signal and I still strongly recommend they use Signal.

    • Schlemmy@lemmy.ml
      2·
      11 hours ago

      Written press and the internet as a whole can be a haven for any kind of malicious groups.

      Privacy is a paradox in that way.

    • xmunk@sh.itjust.works
      141·
      1 day ago

      Seconded - it even has a much better way of dealing with media attachments.

      Just make sure you configure a PIN and backups.

  • jbaber@lemmy.sdf.orgEnglish
    265·
    1 day ago

    For my family member who moved out of country, signal’s voice quality was not very good. WhatsApp’s quality was better than a regular phone call, very impressive.

    Also, outside the US WhatsApp is some kind of standard the way rich Americans think iMessage is. Companies will ask her to contact them on WhatsApp, so she’ll have to have it regardless of your personal involvement.

    There’s also jitsi.

    • Rinox@feddit.it
      2·
      8 hours ago

      Here goes to hoping that EU massages Whatsapp third party compatibility actually works. It would be great if Signal decided to enter the program, so that I could start recommending it to friends and family as a full on replacement, while not losing the ability to communicate with those who use WhatsApp.

      I understand Signal stance, but it would honestly be better to have a mainstream alternative to Whatsapp that actually cares about privacy, rather than a niche product nobody uses

    • riot@lemmy.world
      8·
      24 hours ago

      Also, outside the US WhatsApp is some kind of standard the way rich Americans think iMessage is. Companies will ask her to contact them on WhatsApp, so she’ll have to have it regardless of your personal involvement.

      That really depends on the country that the family member is moving to, and is not an absolute thing world-wide.

    • Vitaly@feddit.uk
      3·
      1 day ago

      Do you think signal’s voice quality is not as good as whatsapp? It might be because they have less servers than whatsapp

      • mexicancartel@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
        1·
        16 hours ago

        Whatsapp and telegram calls are P2P for contacts by default. P2P might reduce call issues which i’m not sure signal does that or not

  • airikr@lemmy.ml
    14·
    1 day ago

    XMPP. Oh, wait, company based.

    • Signal if you want phone number based signups.
    • SimpleX Chat if you want to experience full privacy.
    • Threema if you want basically the same as SimpleX Chat, but want to give them money first.

    But XMPP would be the best option. Snikket is recommended for easy setup.

  • LifeLemons@lemmy.mlEnglish
    161·
    1 day ago

    Signal or XMPP are good option

    XMPP may be a bit overwhelming as you need to select a provider and a client. Doesn’t require phone number.

    Signal is private and easy to use like whatsapp. Needs phone number to use.

    Telegram is cool but encryption isnt enabled by default, would like to avoid it for this. Cool for public groups.

    Edit: Teleram isnt good at all, dont use it. Look reason in the replies

    • Snot Flickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
      212·
      1 day ago

      Telegram’s MTProto has, to my knowledge, never undergone any security audits. It’s a roll-your-own-encryption, which is always dubious when you’re unwilling to have it audited. I would never suggest Telegram, even for cleartext communications.

      • mexicancartel@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
        1·
        15 hours ago

        Are telegram’s secret chats using MTProto? Also i have seen many claims saying it have been audited. They do public bug hunt contest with huge sum as reward to test this afaik

  • unknown1234_5@kbin.earth
    21·
    23 hours ago

    I’d recommend just regular texting, but if for whatever reason you can’t/don’t want to the. matrix should work, it’s basically foss discord.

      • diffusive@lemmy.world
        1·
        7 hours ago

        Otherwise you don’t get all operators being able to read your messages, all the vulnerabilities of SS7 (so not only your operator, any random dude with experience can read your messages)

        So many advantages!

        But it is compatible with iMessage that it is what really matters, really 😂

    • sudoer777@lemmy.ml
      8·
      16 hours ago

      Hey do you want to go get some pizza after work? BTW I love this new messenger called Lemmy, I feel so much safer that we’re not being spied on! C ya

        • Schlemmy@lemmy.ml
          3·
          11 hours ago

          Lemmy isn’t secure and that’s OK because it has a different use case. The owner of your instance has acces to all your messages.

          • DragonsInARoom@lemmy.world
            11·
            8 hours ago

            Bruh, this is a privacy nightmare! Worse than Meta! No worse than everything! I am betrayed! I am bamboozled! I have said many things that can’t see the light of day! This is blacknail! What should I do now? Where do I go? What do I use? Who do I trust? If Lemmy isn’t secure than what does that mean for free speech within the rules? What does that mean for the transfer of ideas? What pressidemce does this set for the rest of the fediverse?!?!121 I must search my souls for the answer, maybe Anom I heard that they don’t spy on you.