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Threema : Small Step to Enhanced Security in Conversations

Founder, start-up, Story, Tech Story / By

What if we told you that there exists an application which completely secures your data privacy? Amid the data breaches taking place, you probably might not believe us. However, it is true, and the app we are talking about is Threema; an instant messaging application, similar to our favourite Whatsapp. The app has been the one-time ‘Android App of the Year(2015)’ and two-time ‘Best Selling iOS App (2014, 2015)’ winner.

Manuel Kasper founder threema
Image Source: 20min.ch

Threema was founded by Manuel Kasper, an entrepreneur from Switzerland, in 2012. The country is known for its pro-data privacy laws, so do the app. The app is also subject to strict European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). It, basically, functions on unique identification, unlike other apps which function on Private information such as a mobile number.

In 2013, Threema expanded its user base on an exponential scale. This sudden rise in users came from Europe, particularly from Germany. This was a primary result of the infamous Snowden’s revelations. These revelations had a two-fold effect. Firstly, it exposed the American surveillance network and its outreach. Secondly, there was an outbreak of public awareness of the importance of data privacy. Suddenly, the topic of Data Privacy became of broad and current interest. People started paying closer review to it.

Since then, many people have commented on data privacy issues. In a recent interview, Tim Cook, Apple CEO, said, “Lately, it seems this industry is becoming better known for a less noble innovation – the belief you can claim the credit without accepting responsibility”. Cook also blasted corporations on data privacy issues, breaches, violations. Facebook’s recent scandal, where the people’s information was harvested without their permission. It shook the world. However, Mark Zuckerberg dodged punishment in a seemingly unconvincing way.

Threema aims to securely protect user data and exhibits some characteristic features, which distinguish it from the competition. It promises the security of the user’s data by way of end-to-end encryption technology, which is not limited only to a ‘person to person’ conversation, but also to group chats, voice messages and media files. The technology ensures the singular ability of the recipient to decrypt the messages. Neither any service provider nor any person can decrypt them.

We all know that technology giant ‘Whatsapp‘ has been creating data profiles of users for its parent organisation ‘Facebook’. However, Threema does not fiddle around with “Metadata”, meaning that the app collects the particular data which is “sine qua non” for the conversation between people. Such an approach has appealed to the people. However, every coin has two sides. Threema’s enhanced security has been misused by terrorist modules such as ISIS and Hizbul to converse freely in a secure environment.

Threema also ensures safe and anonymous data recovery through its platform. Threema Safe is an automated self-hosted platform for the purpose of data recovery. The backup is processed by ‘scrypt’ algorithm, which creates a near-impenetrable cryptographic key. Such an algorithm leaves brute-force attacks useless.

Threema has based its success purely on its exceptional security protocol. If you look at data privacy as one of the major concerns, you don’t need to look beyond. It has been widely praised as one of the most secure messaging apps. And if that is not enough, the app has also scored perfectly well on several tests and studies. While this has happened, the app has treaded on the lines of secure communication diverting from the apathetic chaos created by certain organizations, making our life little more secure.

Talmon Marco – The Co-Founder of Instant Messaging Software Application ‘Viber’

Founder, start-up, Story, Tech Story / By

When technology, in its early years swooped into our lives and started developing, everyone hoped that it would connect people more efficiently than ever. The telephone was one of the best results produced from the growth of technology, but with the evolution of the internet, the demand for something new and instant started to increase. This demand sparked a lot of genius ideas across the world, which today, have given us n-number of mediums to connect that we operate on today. Talmon Marco, an American-Israeli entrepreneur, also had an idea in his mind, and that idea led to Viber, an interaction-based application software over call and messaging.

talmon marco
Image Source: zimbio.com

In 2010, Igor and Marco started their next startup, ‘Viber’. Viber is a cross-platform voice over IP and instant messaging software application. The inspiration for Viber was the love story of Talmon and his girlfriend (now wife). Talmon lived in New York, and his girlfriend lived in Hong Kong. They both talked a lot on the phone, which eventually, led to huge phone bills. This got Marco thinking that how he can stay in touch with his loved one without sacrificing much from the pocket.

The funds generated by iMesh supported the cause of Viber. Viber’s service started on December 2, 2010, in Israel, and it was rather a soft launch in a market that was willing to try a new app. The software uses telephone numbers to register, though it is accessible through desktop without needing any mobile connectivity. Viber did not receive any venture capital money, and the company was all funded by friends and family.

The company was producing a promising product from the very beginning, in fact, since it released its first iOS version. The latter gained Viber nearly 350 million users. The company also released an Android app six months later but at first, it was limited only to 50,000 users. A full version of the app was released a year later. In May 2012, Viber announced that it would be rolling out the software for Blackberry and Windows phones. In the span of two months, Viber gained a total of 90 million users. The company was progressing at a pace and decided to bring in the availability of high-definition voice calling, “Viber Out” and group messaging.

The app gave a tough competition to WhatsApp, Skype, and the other similar software present. It had an advantage over Skype. For using Skype, one had to register using password and had to maintain a buddy list, whereas to use Viber, the one simply needed to register using the phone number.

After 2 years, when the software established itself as one of the top connectivity apps, the company generated no revenue, and so it started to monetize itself via user payments for Viber Out voice and stickers store. The company’s support system was attacked by the Syrian Electronic Army. However, the company disclosed that there was no important information that was compromised.

On 13th February 2014, Viber was purchased by Japanese Electronic commerce and internet service ’Rakuten’ for a massive $900 million. The founders saw a 30-times return for what they invested. Rakuten merged its 200 million user client base with Viber. As of now, Viber has more than 650 million registered users. Marco stepped down as the company CEO in 2015.

The story of Talmon Marco’s founded Viber shows that anything can be done even when one has limited resources. All one needs is to find the light at the end of the tunnel.