What are /r/Threema's favorite Products & Services?

From 3.5 billion Reddit comments

As stated in the quoted blog post, we entered the partnership with Afinum (a year ago) in order to gain access to additional resources. Of course, Threema’s founders continue to lead the company.

So, to answer your question: Yes, it is a partnership. And it should go without saying that Afinum fully shares our values in regard to security and data protection. Thanks to this partnership, we were able to publish our apps’ source code, and Afinum supports us in the B2B area. For example, they helped us in finding our new Head of Sales (cf. https://www.itreseller.ch/Artikel/94595/Miguel_Rodriguez_verstaerkt_Vertrieb_von_Threema.html).

Threema has had audits: https://threema.ch/press-files/2_documentation/security_audit_report_threema_2019.pdf

If I required as much security as possible, I'd use Signal. But I don't, and Threema has a better balance of usability and security for me. Heck, I think WhatsApp has a good balance too. Aesthetics and features matter.

If the legal requirements are fully met, we can provide the following information associated with a given Threema ID: Hash of phone number, if provided by the user Hash of email address, if provided by the user Push token, if a push service is used Public key Date (without time) of Threema ID creation Date (without time) of last login

Here’s a statistic of all requests by authorities that we have received since 2014:

Year Requests by Swiss authorities Requests by foreign authorities with Swiss legal assistance Requests that have met the formal requirements Requests that didn’t meet the formal requirements Handing over of data (# cases) Handing over of data (# IDs) 2020 105 () 104 1 98 558 2019 101 () 98 3 93 317 2018 28 (*) 25 3 25 69 2017 2 2 4 – 3 12 2016 – 1 1 – 1 1 2015 1 – – 1 – – 2014 – – – – – – * Since the new BÜPF act has come into force on March 1, 2018, Threema can no longer distinguish between requests by Swiss authorities and requests by foreign authorities with Swiss legal assistance.

Last update: 2021-01-04

https://threema.ch/en/transparencyreport

Hi u/DangerPizzaSlice, thank you for you inquiry!

Yes, the Threema Work and Threema apps are completely compatible and generally identical regarding features. Also, both are compliant with the EU General Data Protection Regulation. You can find more information on the differences between Threema Work and Threema here: https://threema.ch/en/work/support/diff.

Should you have further questions, do not hesitate to contact us directly: [email protected]. We are always happy to help! ^pm

The connectivity with the server seems to be up again.

A Threema Safe backup does not contain messages (see https://threema.ch/en/faq/threema_safe_contents), so those messages are probably lost. However, your contacts should be back, they are part of Threema Safe.

You can also trigger a manual contact sync by pulling down the contact list. Maybe that helps?

There is no Threema Cloud, where you can backup all your chats to. You can backup to the Threema servers only your ID: https://threema.ch/en/faq/threema_safe. These data are backup to Threema: https://threema.ch/en/faq/threema_safe_contents.

Yes is similar to Signal. Threema has other advantages, so the one time payment is worth it.

Imagine all the Threema users want to make Full backups inclusive chats and media to the Threema Servers. Then Threema would need a lot of storage. Through media like pictures and videos the backups can get big. These extra servers would cost money and who should pay that? The apps are too cheap to cover these costs. Would be only possible with a subscription.

Hi, sorry to hear that!

Problems in relation to push notifications are typically caused by restrictions on certain device types. Please follow these instructions: https://threema.ch/faq/nopush. However, possible causes could also be network restrictions, security, cleaning, or other system optimizer apps (such as CClenaer, Clean Master, Security Master, etc.), or other optimizing mechanisms of the operating system that prevent Threema from running in the background (e.g. storage/memory manager).

If you need help resolving those issues, please get in touch with our support team. We will gladly help you: [email protected]. ^pm

Absolutely agree with you there. They explained it in their Messenger comparison as followed: "The security and reliability of this feature [“Self-destructing” messages] is questionable. Depending on the operating system, the content of a message can still be accessed in the operating system’s notification log after the message has been deleted in the app."

Have a look at https://threema.ch/en/faq/status_expl

If you see the closed envelope, it means that the message is sent to the server but not received by your partner (may be received but not seen if using Windows Phone).

I asked Threema support about this last summer.

Q: Is there a way to set the location where a backup will be saved? If I could backup to the 64 GB SD card I have installed, that would solve my problem. If the data file could be set to be stored on the SD card in the first place, that would also make things easier for me. I did not see any option to do this in the options.

A: Thank you for your inquiry. Currently the feature you mentioned is not available. We take the requests of our users into account, but are not able to disclose if or when such a feature will be implemented in Threema. We will gladly accept your future suggestions on the following site: https://threema.ch/en/feedback

I'm a bit of an outlier since I'm using a weird ROM on an outdated phone. Maybe it works for newer Android versions. I'm a bit sketchy on the details but I think they changed something about how storage management works between 5.x and 7.x

I don't know if your Sony Google Playstore has it, but there should be another Threema Addon called Threema QR Scanner plugin. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ch.threema.qrscannerplugin

Install that and give it a shot.

Can't speak for everyone.

• I know some country with sanctions can't use credit cards.

• Some crypto can't be tracked, so no one would know you bought it. Say the police where looking for you, they would use Bank transactions to start a search.

• Discounts, like Mullvad give 10% if you are using crypto because less fees and stuff.

Why not? 😆 It's more privacy is good. Would be similar to giving your phone number away, not everyone wants that and are seeking for another option.

Plus some countries might prevent you from using your cards.

Good example is Mullvad, they accept crypto currency like Monero and not only that, it's available in stores like Amazon.

If Threema can't go for Monero, maybe they should sell cards in different shops because it's easy to convert crypto into giftcards.

No, we do not see any file names when you send files via Threema. As /u/AwayAluminium wrote, all content (including the file name) is encrypted locally on your device.

You can find technical information about the file sending process in our cryptography whitepaper, in the section "Media Access Protocol".

Happy file-sending! ^db

No, not yet possible. It still in development:

There is a workaround with using groups for messaging. So you could create a group with your id, your tablet id and your chat partner.

Details you find in the FAQ:

https://threema.ch/en/faq/multideviceexpl

You probably just got rate limited, even though it looks like it. Stuff on the internet isn't free.

You can contact Threema at the bottom of their FAQ page: https://threema.ch/en/support They'll probably help you.

We receive numerous great feature suggestions every day, and we’re constantly working on improving the Threema app. However, we’re not able to implement all features (at once), we're currently working on our multi-device functionality.

With open sourcing our applications, larger groups, quotes for media messages and the first version of our desktop application we delivered some of the most requested features while working on the multi-device functionality. Stay tuned for more information about our new desktop client and more features. ^jf

What you can do right now if you already have an iphone, buy a old phone, a pixel is ok. But install LineageOS, learn it first. Forget about grapheneos and all the pivacy marketing. You can use both (iphone and LineageOS try to use LineageOS for every day) at the moment until you do the change to lineageos. Then when you fell is ok you may try any other Android distros because you have your iphone, so format and install calyxos, grapheneos or /e/ the site https://e.foundation

I am in a small threema group related with privacy if you are interested to be part of, or any want that read thin send me you threema ID in private message.

It's kinda obvious that Signal is only allowed to operate because it sticks to the parameters that 3-letter agencies dictate ...

Examples:

• Phone number required
• Contact upload / PIN by default (with dark patterns)
• Hosted in US data center
• No server federation
• Closed source server
• No alternative app stores
• ...

This makes it easy to crack (or at least monitor) for a certain government, whereas most other parties can't touch it.

Check out Session for a privacy aware fork. https://getsession.org

In the last few days, something incredible has started to happen to users. I have not seen such a record of downloading alternative messengers for a long time. It is striking the truth that the majority still choose not entirely reliable. Let me remind you that an application that does not require the use of personal data at all, such as utopia p2p and the like, can be considered really safe. The phone number is also a part of personal data, remember this.

https://threema.ch/en/faq/data

I don't see anything regarding what happened.

https://threema.ch/en/messenger-comparison

"Signal requires users to disclose personally identifiable information. Threema, on the other hand, can be used anonymously: Users don’t have to provide their phone number or email address. The fact that Signal, being a US-based IT service provider, is subject to the CLOUD Act only makes this privacy deficit worse."

Again no word about ifs and whens regarding Threema.

"In terms of security and privacy protection, there’s no match for Threema. It’s the only service that can be used anonymously, i.e., without providing personally identifiable information (such as a phone number or email address)." - Threemas Promise

Additionally the swiss jurisdiction is promoted which we now saw isn't worth much more than others.

Signal on the other hand pretty much state very clear that they don't provide an anonymous system.

When using Google's push notification system (part of Firebase and Play Services) your phone only needs to maintain a single connection for push notifications - the connection to Google. Any app that wants to send you a notification sends it to Google, and Google forwards it to you. Note that Google cannot read the contents of those push notifications as they're encrypted. This is battery preserving and generally recommend by app authors.

Some privacy-minded messengers (e.g. Threema and Signal) provide builds that do not use Google's system. Those builds are usually distributed through their websites (.apk download) or F-Droid. Without Google's system, each of these apps has to maintain it's own connection for push notifications. The more apps you install the more your battery life will be affected. This is generally discouraged by app authors. Signal even puts this option in a so-called "danger zone" on their website. You may also notice delayed push notifications or missing push notifications as these apps try to minimize battery usage.

https://threema.ch/en/faq/android_nogoogle

https://signal.org/android/apk/

Hi, there might be a network restriction imposed by the network administrator of your employer. In order for all features to work, the ports listed in the following FAQ must not be blocked: https://threema.ch/faq/ports. We will gladly answer further questions: [email protected]. ^pm

If you are having issues when sending messages while the app is open, the most likely culprit is the internet connection and not a battery saver mode.

Can you check what kind of speeds you are getting when using our speed test at threema.ch/speedtest? ^jf

Provided that a stable Internet connection is established, messages are typically delivered within a few seconds if the background permissions on the recipient’s phone are configured correctly.

Which state are the messages in when they are not delivered quickly? Are they sending, sent or delivered (threema.ch/faq/status_expl)?

I think this was the post: https://threema.ch/en/blog/posts/md-architectural-overview-intro

It does not say "desktop client for 2021" explicitly, but multi-device support might include desktop as well as tables or other phones.

I've had issues with not being able to make a call on wi-fi.
The speedtester on the Threema site is useful. Tech support told me if your connection has a Jitter score of more than 30 call quality is affected. However, I can use WhatsApp, Skype and Facetime on the same network without call quality being affected.

I just stick to using data most of the time. My moto handset seems to have various speed test scores no where near as fast as a laptop.

​

https://threema.ch/speedtest/

On my Android phone I managed to improve the quality of calls on wifi by resetting the network connections and reconnecting to the wifi. The downside of this is you lose all the wifi connections in your library and have to reconnect to every network again with wifi passwords etc.

>No, a push token is not in itself tied to an ID. A government would need a warrant to get information about an ID from Threema (which is not that easy with Swiss legislation) and then another warrant to find out more about the token.

That's what I'm saying. See Threema transparency report .... very few requests get denied. And then they just send a second letter to Apple. Done.

I use Android so not sure if is available on iPhone. Here read the FAQ https://threema.ch/en/faq/privacy_push

If you are new and you want to avoid bigTech like Apple and Google and avoid data harvest, you can try LineageOS.org with a compatibly phone (avoid full Chinese phone) without play store, replace with f-droid store and Izzy repository.

If by chance you still want to chat sometimes we can use Threema. Send me your ID private message.

Robotic voices are typically due to connection speed. If a contact is unverified (a single red dot) or you have enabled “Always relay calls”, the connection speed will depend on your connection speed to our servers in Switzerland. To allow Threema to make a direct connection to your contact, disable the “Always relay calls” option and verify your contact (https://threema.ch/en/faq/levels_expl).

This is most likely due to a network issue. Please contact us at [*SUPPORT](threema.id/*SUPPORT) or through our support form threema.ch/en/support#contact. If you can add the information outlined in this post, we can get started right away.

I suspect it's due to the recipient not disabling battery optimization for Threema, causing the push notification to Threema that there's a call incoming to be delayed. If you're also seeing delays in messages reaching the recipient's phone, battery optimization is very likely the case.

https://threema.ch/en/faq/push_andr2

Yes, once we publish an application for the desktop, that will be available on Linux as well. However, right now we cannot disclose more information about it. The technical details about our multi-device approach are outlined here: https://threema.ch/en/blog/posts/md-architectural-overview ^db

Here is an article which compare threema, signal WhatsApp and telegram in terms of SecurityPrivacy, Features and Portability. Keep in mind that this article was written by Threema!

I am also a bit worried. The only information they provide are the already done changes: https://threema.ch/en/versionhistory

But no roadmap or at least a plan of what is coming. The version history already shows that there are not many updates in general what does not look very promising...

The app cannot even group multiple photos which were sent at the same time (a really simple but useful one). No sign of group video calls (did they miss 2020?). Taking chats with you when switching from iOS to Android and the other way around... not possible.

Less features and languages for iOS? Not convincing.

The assumption that with their new investor they focus more on Threema Work seems not to be wrong... probably more realistic to make money there.

You have to be in the Beta program to access video calls. Threema Blog

...../ Unfortunately, we cannot accept new iOS beta testers due to Apple’s TestFlight limits. We’re sorry about that. ..../

I recently asked Threema support about disappearing messages. This was their response:

> Hello

> Thank you for reaching out.

>We take the requests of our users into account, but > we are not able to disclose if or when > such a feature will be implemented in Threema. We > will gladly accept your future > suggestions here: https://threema.ch/en/feedback

> Thank you for your support and have fun using Threema!

So you have tried everything described here? https://threema.ch/en/faq/push_xiaomi

If so, try one more thing (this fixed the problem with the Xiaomi phone of a friend of mine): Threema Settings -> Troubleshooting -> Immediate Notifications

I'm really confused why you think this wouldn't work. The method whats app uses to communicate between the browser and the phone is TNO. Thats what I'm talking about copying.

Again, I suspect because you haven't used it you do not understand what I mean. Please read this and see if it makes more sense: https://www.whatsapp.com/faq/en/web/28080003

I know WhatsApp is not secure, sells your data and is a crappy app to use, but this particular element is an elegant solution to the problem of no support for multi-devices.

https://wire.com

https://wickr.com

both have free options, but they are buried very deeply on the site - can you draw your own conclusions?

And only these two projects have such a very similar design not only the application but even the site and monetization policy - but no one writes anywhere about their relationship...

How weird is that?

ROFL

Why is that whenever there's a good piece of software there's just that one tiny easily fixable thing that the devs just refuse to add? Signal with the phone number, Mullvad with not accepting Monero and Threema with no disappearing messages.

Do you actually believe that story? If you knew the truth then you’d trust NordVPN more than ever. In fact after the truth came out, NordVPN gain more customers more than ever, so in reality people like you who read misleading clickbait stories will cry no trust but not actually know the story.

A Finnish server that was a third party didn’t disclose the breach until way after to NordVPN and when NordVPN got the news and have to collect everything in proper form before going out public with this to prevent any misinformation which is standard to any situation like this. They dropped the server provider and decided to start doing collocated servers.

Why aren’t you reading their articles following up to the breach even if it’s years later? Why aren’t you acknowledging the audits they’ve done and passed it better than any other VPN service?

I find it a bit silly to yell no trust when the evidence it right there proving otherwise. You have full right to have your opinion and thought but I also want to present to you the other side of this where you could make a better or I should say updated conclusion on your stance with NordVPN. This isn’t to advocate or to sell you the product but to only give you an opportunity to update your stance on a product with new information presented.

You realize in terms of performance and server ability, speed, and port availability NordVPN surpasses almost everyone, quite possibly everyone actually. Don’t associate their poor customer service with their server performance as they literally present themselves as two separate things unfortunately. Everyone will have the own opinion or view on VPNs but when it comes to recommending for the common person and non tech savvy people you’d have to put that into consideration, they’d get lost with IVPN even though they have good features. NordVPN has more features than most providers along with Surfsark and ProtonVPN so that’s why I recommend and for the future if they decide to get more advanced, they can do so without changing VPN providers.