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Tell HN: WhatsApp Is Down

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Re: Tell HN: WhatsApp Is Down

#121

Post by the_duke »

theelous3 wrote: post #43
the_duke wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Signal is just another centralised architecture. You should recruit people to Matrix , which supports Federation.

Yep. I host my own server and have it federated. That part was simple. It was a struggle to get my core group of friends to sign up, and I just sort of haven't bothered trying to get anyone outside that group to try it. They are not technical people in the hn sense but are vastly more competent than the average joe. It's the normies at large who dictate comms platforms really. Things like matching emoji support and e…

The EU digital services act will force the big messengers to provide interoperability.

Re: Tell HN: WhatsApp Is Down

#122

Post by palata »

d1sxeyes wrote: post #114
fguerraz wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It doesn't matter, the app is closed source so they can still access your messages regadless of what protocol they use. https://gizmodo.com/whatsapp-moderators-can-read-your-messag...

That article doesn't support what you're saying. It says that WhatsApp has access to metadata, which it hands over to law enforcement. This does not necessarily mean that they can read your messages. It does say that 'WhatsApp can read some of your messages if the recipient reports them'. That 'if' is doing a lot of work in this sentence. It means that the recipient has to decrypt your message. Although there are for…

> The fact that it's closed source just means that we can't verify that for ourselves.

That's really the whole point. As far as we know, it could be that it is not e2ee at all.

Also from the moderation article, it's not clear to me what that means: if I report you, does that mean that the moderators will get access to all your recent conversations? Could be, right? But then the FBI could report you for no reason, and then ask WhatsApp to provide your recent conversations. Which would effectively act as some kind of backdoor, right?

Re: Tell HN: WhatsApp Is Down

#123

Post by xwolfi »

anonu wrote: post #120
danpalmer wrote: post #55

In my experience WhatsApp has around 1 hour of (noticeable?) downtime a year, although not evenly spread out. That's about 99.99% available, which I'd consider pretty damn good for a consumer application. There's almost no person or business who will have a real problem caused by that. Let's not blow things out of proportion.

I think some businesses depend on Whatsapp. I remember jumping in a cab in a middle eastern country and they would use voice notes on Whatsapp almost like how you would use a 2 way radio. An hour of losing your normal mode of communication will impact your small business

But that s ok and acceptable: you didnt pay, you didnt insure, you must accept best effort service I fear.

Re: Tell HN: WhatsApp Is Down

#124

Post by skeaker »

jliptzin wrote: post #118
palata wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They say they do, but you have to trust them. You don't have to trust Signal, you can audit the sources (or trust some third party to do it for you).

How do you know the source code you’re looking at is for the same program you downloaded from the App Store? Does apple publish a checksum of software you’re installing?

This is a failure of Apple and their walled garden, not of Signal. If this is a concern to you, you either need to jailbreak or switch to a more free as in freedom platform.

Re: Tell HN: WhatsApp Is Down

#125

Post by gaius_baltar »

jliptzin wrote: post #118
palata wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They say they do, but you have to trust them. You don't have to trust Signal, you can audit the sources (or trust some third party to do it for you).

How do you know the source code you’re looking at is for the same program you downloaded from the App Store? Does apple publish a checksum of software you’re installing?

> Does apple publish a checksum of software you’re installing?

Reproducible builds: https://github.com/signalapp/Signal-Android/tree/main/reprod...

Re: Tell HN: WhatsApp Is Down

#126

Post by dj_mc_merlin »

fazfq wrote: post #80
dj_mc_merlin wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I haven't had to pay for SMS in the last decade. Even roaming is free in the EU too. Do we live in divergent Europe timelines or something?

>I haven't had to pay for SMS in the last decade. Even roaming is free in the EU too. Whether you pay for SMS or not depends on your telco. Regarding roaming, let's say that you pay the same you'd pay if you were in your country if you leave the country, but you still pay different rates if you try to call or text someone from another country (whether you are roaming or not) >Do we live in divergent Europe timelines…

> you still pay different rates if you try to call or text someone from another country (whether you are roaming or not)

I have a LycaMobile NL bundle (which you can get without having an address there) which is 15euro for 20 gigs + unlimited calls/sms national/international. Roaming too due to EU regulations. I've had service from the westmost point to the eastmost point of the EU with this SIM.

> life in Europe is very different depending on your country.

I know, I've lived in 4 countries by now in different regions. Thus the need to obtain cheap international SIMs, which are easy to acquire in most countries.

Re: Tell HN: WhatsApp Is Down

#127

Post by dlqx »

What's the big issue here? Can't people remain in silence for a few hours without their usual communication.

Are we so dependent on these tools?

If there is something really urgent I don't think people would use WhatsApp in the first place, or when did you text with 911 the last time using WhatsApp?

Maybe we got even more productive and thoughtful during these cutt-off hours. Hours without notification, chit-chat and that social background hum we so much used to be in doesn't sound that bad, does it?

Re: Tell HN: WhatsApp Is Down

#128

Post by palata »

jliptzin wrote: post #118
palata wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They say they do, but you have to trust them. You don't have to trust Signal, you can audit the sources (or trust some third party to do it for you).

How do you know the source code you’re looking at is for the same program you downloaded from the App Store? Does apple publish a checksum of software you’re installing?

Honestly, if it really mattered a lot to me (i.e. to my own security), I would compile Signal from source and install it on my device. Which I could not do with WhatsApp.

Re: Tell HN: WhatsApp Is Down

#129

Post by theelous3 »

the_duke wrote: post #121
theelous3 wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yep. I host my own server and have it federated. That part was simple. It was a struggle to get my core group of friends to sign up, and I just sort of haven't bothered trying to get anyone outside that group to try it. They are not technical people in the hn sense but are vastly more competent than the average joe. It's the normies at large who dictate comms platforms really. Things like matching emoji support and e…

The EU digital services act will force the big messengers to provide interoperability.

I don't see this happening. Got a link I can learn more about it from?
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