![]() There are options that range from a few seconds to 24 hours. This allows you to set an interval after which all messages have been seen where they’re deleted automatically. Once the secret conversation has been set up, you can activate ‘disappearing messages’. This is the best way to be sure your conversation is secure. Tap their name to compare the keys they see for you with those you see for yourself. You’ll see a list of all conversation members. To get started, open your secret conversation and click the other person’s name. Make sure to compare keys either in person or over the telephone. You don’t need to do this every time you talk with someone but you should do it each time either of you resets or replaces their device or logs out of Facebook. If these match, it’s highly unlikely that someone is impersonating either of you and intercepting your messages: this is known as a MITM (“Man in the Middle”) attack. Comparing Keysīefore you start chatting with anyone new in ‘secret’ conversations, you should compare the ‘keys’ used to encrypt your conversations. ![]() Make sure to archive the other conversation thread so you don’t accidentally send messages “in the clear”. You can tell the difference by the grey padlock icon next to the message text in your secret conversations. If you have an existing conversation with someone already in Messenger, both the regular unencrypted conversation and your secret conversation will be there. Once the secret conversation has been set up you’ll see it listed in your messages. Facebook also supports creating end-to-end encrypted group chats and audio/video calls. Type in the name of the person to whom you want to chat, then click their name. Next, click the ‘compose’ icon at the top right and then tap the rocker switch with the picture of a padlock (also at the top right). To start setting up a “secret” conversation, open the Messenger app and go to the ‘Chats’ section. Still, not everyone may feel that way, so you may have to keep using Facebook to stay in touch. If you’re a VPN user you care for your privacy, so switching to a different messaging platform won’t be an issue. Do this if you still want to use Messenger In fact, Signal has previously threatened to leave both the UK & USA if the countries’ governments try to force this issue. This allows for independent auditing of the code base of things like “backdoors”. Open-source apps make their code freely available for inspection. Consider FOSS (free and open source alternatives) like Signal instead. If you want to be certain that your messages are protected by end-to-end encryption, avoid proprietary apps like Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp. This might be why it’s only supported on mobile devices for now. The UK Government and various British charities in particular have tried to pressure Facebook not to enable E2EE in Messenger by default. As the code used to create it is “closed source”, there’s no way for security experts to check that E2EE has been set up properly and contains no bugs or “back doors”. In practice, it’s hard to tell if Messenger truly does use E2EE encryption. In theory, this means you can have a “secret conversation” with another Facebook user, without Meta having any idea what you’re talking about as your messages move across their servers. Does Facebook support E2EE?įacebook claims to support end-to-end encryption on the Android and iOS dedicated ‘Messenger’ app. In plain English, that means that if you’re using a messaging service that supports E2EE like Signal, even the provider can’t read what you send or receive. The ‘private’ key used to decrypt your data never leaves your device. What is E2EE?Į2EE (end-to-end encryption) is a process where your data is encrypted and decrypted using separate keys. In the case of websites like Facebook, this means that anyone with access to their servers could read your messages. Once your traffic leaves the VPN server though, it’s decrypted. That means that anyone with access to your ISP’s records won’t know which websites you’re visiting or be able to read your messages. If you use a VPN to connect to the internet from your device, then your connection between the device and the VPN server is encrypted.
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