No phone number or email address is required to signup. Uses the peer-to-peer (p2p) messaging protocol Waku that removes centralized third parties from messages.
Status
status.im
Our take
An account needs only a generated identity, no phone number or email, and the peer-to-peer Waku transport removes centralized middlemen, which is a coherent privacy story. The tradeoff is that it bundles a messenger with a crypto wallet and ecosystem, so there is more app than some people want. Good for those committed to decentralized infrastructure; heavier than necessary if you only need private chat.
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Status alternatives
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