“Signal is the gold standard in private comms”, CEO claims after the White House chat botch

You may be using WhatsApp, Telegram, Messenger – or you may be sending old-fashioned handwritten letters – but if you’re into private messaging, you’ve surely come across Signal in recent years.

This app is “the gold standard” in private communication, Signal CEO Meredith Whittaker said, allegedly hinting at the recent scandal when White House officials disclosed sensitive information by mistake to media people by including them in a Signal chat group. Their political opponents, of course, used this to ring the alarm bells and say that’s a breach of US national security.

Signal’s CEO highlights the app’s commitment to privacy, emphasizing that it operates as an open-source nonprofit dedicated to developing and implementing end-to-end encryption and other privacy-preserving technologies.These measures protect both metadata and message contents across the platform, Whittaker claims. According to her, the company provides minimal data in response to legal demands, which can be verified through its transparency page.

The CEO also acknowledges that WhatsApp uses Signal’s cryptographic technology to secure message content for its consumer app, but not for its business version. However, neither version of WhatsApp protects sensitive metadata, such as contact lists, communication patterns, timestamps, and profile photos. Since WhatsApp collects this data, it is required to hand it over when legally compelled, just like any other company that stores such information.

While Signal appreciates that WhatsApp has adopted its encryption technology to improve privacy standards, Meredith Whittaker stresses the importance of transparency regarding the limitations of WhatsApp’s privacy protections. Signal aims not only to set a high bar for privacy but also to encourage the broader tech industry to meet that standard. The CEO underscores the need for the public to have a clear understanding of these differences, rather than being misled by marketing claims.

Reuters cites some statistics from market intelligence firm Sensor Tower that US downloads of Signal in the Q1 of 2025 were up 16% compared to the prior quarter, and 25% compared to the same period in 2024.

It’s pretty popular, as it seems.