In a modern world made of not only real, but also virtual and remote relationships, it is normal that apps and private communication platforms have been successful and that leaves no traces. There are two ways of understanding the word " privately " in a chat program: in the sense that it cannot be intercepted from the outside or in the sense that every message sent is automatically deleted after it has been received and read.
While we have already tried the best private and secure chat apps, among which the app for untraceable and secret messages Signal stands out, on this occasion we discover the best apps for writing with messages that cancel and self-destruct .
The latter are ideal not only for exchanging intimate photos and videos, but also for exchanging information regarding private affairs for which you do not want any written evidence to remain.
Basically it is a system of communicating as if it were in person, where nothing written or visible remains that can be tried (and where at least theoretically it is not possible to take screenshots or photograph the screen).
READ ALSO: Send messages or emails that self-destruct (also Gmail)
1) When it comes to self-destructing messages, the first app that comes to mind is, of course, Snapchat which today is still the most popular app for sharing photos and videos in a secret way, so that no trace remains after having seen it . Let's say that you have the sudden need to send a friend a private or confidential photo to a friend.
If you do not want to give the recipient the opportunity to save it or to share it with other people, you can use Snapchat.
The recipient will have only a few seconds, 1, 3, 5 or 10, depending on the choice of the sender, to view the message, photo or video that has been received.
Anyone who receives a photo via Snapchat must press and hold on the screen while viewing to prevent it from being deleted instantly.
Photos, videos or text messages sent through the Snapchat application last 10 seconds at most and then disappear forever, with no way of being able to save it.
After the recipient opens the message, the countdown starts and there is no way to go back and review its contents.
Obviously, recipients can see these messages that self-destruct only if they have also installed the Snapchat application on their Android smartphone or iPhone.
Some might think that you can save a photo or message sent via Snapchat by taking a screenshot of the mobile phone screen.
This is possible if you are fast enough but an alert is sent to the sender for each attempt to save the message .
However, given that Snapchat has become widely used, it is perhaps no longer ideal for exchanging messages, photos and videos in private and instead it would be preferable to use alternative apps, less known and stronger to delete messages and make them no longer recoverable.
2) Wickr, available for Android and for iPhone, is the app used by the hackers of the TV series Mr Robot, who in advertising claims to be the favorite chat of world leaders, executives, journalists, human rights activists, celebrities and close friends .
Wickr, therefore, guarantees greater privacy and also anonymity, allows you to set a self-destruction timer to delete images and text sent immediately after receipt and makes encrypted chats end-to-end, so that no one, not even the programmer of Wickr, please read them if you are not a recipient or a sender.
The interface is somewhat reminiscent of Instagram, uncluttered, with three reactions available for each photo Wickr is available for both Android and iOS.
This app is ad-free and promises to be like this forever.
3) Dust (CyberDust), for Android smartphones and for iPhone, offers an encrypted messaging system, with the possibility of sending messages, videos and photos that are automatically deleted after 24 hours.
You can also set an immediate expiration of messages so that they are destroyed as soon as they are opened and read.
As in Wickr, every communication is encrypted.
If the recipient tries to save the image with a screenshot, the sender is notified immediately.
4) Sobrr (no longer active) allows you to send messages, photos and videos also in group chat, where all contents are automatically deleted after 24 hours.
In this app there is no protection against screenshots, but it is ensured that anything sent can only be viewed once.
For the moment it is the worst on this list, but I will mention it for completeness and to try it in case it improves in the future.
5) Kaboom (has been withdrawn) is a very interesting service that allows you to share photos, messages and videos on expiration on any chat app, even Whatsapp and also through normal SMS. It is also the only one of these applications that does not require the recipient to have Kaboom installed at all.
Each message created with Kabook generates a protected HTTPS web address that can then be copied and sent via SMS, email, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and as you wish. For each link created, you can decide how long it must remain active and how many times it can be opened and displayed before self-destructing. Kaboom is a simple application, very clean, according to experts very reliable.
6) Confide (for Android and as an add-on for iMessage on iPhone) allows you to send messages that cancel themselves after a certain period of time, with end-to-end encryption and better protection from screenshots than any other app.
Furthermore, only a part of the message is revealed time by time, the sender's name is never visible from the message view and if a screenshot is attempted, the recipient is expelled from the message and the sender notified.
7) Even if there is not much to be trusted from the point of view of privacy, one cannot overlook the fact that even on Facebook there is now the secret chat that can be destroyed .
8) Telegram has the function of secret and end-to-end encrypted chat, with the possibility of setting a message self-destruction timer.
READ ALSO: App for anonymous chat with random people
