Signal: Encrypted Messaging App Not Hacked Despite Rumors

The encrypted messaging app Signal, which prioritizes user data privacy and security, is denying rumors the app has been compromised and hacked.

The company released a statement Twitter implying the rumors began because of "an uptick in usage in Eastern Europe" and claimed they are "part of a coordinated misinformation campaign meant to encourage people to use less secure alternatives."

"Rumors are circulating that Signal is hacked & compromised," the company wrote. "This is false. Signal is not hacked."

"We're seeing these rumors appear in messages forwarded on several different apps," it added. "These rumors are often attributed to official government sources and read 'attacks on Signal platform.' This is false and Signal is not under attack."

Signal, founded in 2014, gained momentum after Facebook's WhatsApp updated their privacy policy to favor business data mining last year, The Verge reported at the time.

The six-year-old app had about 20 million users worldwide in December 2020, but in a 12-hour period after WhatsApp's privacy policy update, Signal added another 2 million users.

"We're organized as a nonprofit because we feel like the way the internet currently works is insane," former Signal CEO Moxie Marlinspike told the outlet. "And a lot of that insanity, to us, is the result of bad business models that produce bad technology. And they have bad societal outcomes."

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