Indigenous instant messaging app Aarattai has become very popular in a few days. This Apple App has also reached number one on Store and Google Play Store. This app developed by Zoho is considered a direct rival of Whatsapp. But is it true? There are many features in Arattai that make it a rival of Whatsapp, but in terms of chat encryption it is behind WhatsApp. The chats on Arattai are not end-to-end encrypted. However, the company has provided end-to-end encryption for the call.
This indigenous app became number one on the App App Store. Will Arattai compete with Whatsapp?
In simple words, this means that whenever you send a message to Whatsapp, it is an encryp on your phone first. That is, the message is converted into code. Although the message passes through the server of Whatsapp, it remains only as a code.
Even the company itself cannot read chats on WhatsApp. It is unlocked only when the message recipient reaches the phone and is available for the other person to read. You must have seen that on clicking on the profile in WhatsApp chat window, there is an option to verify the end-to-end encryption. This code should match between the sender and the recipient. A major advantage of end-to-end encryption in chatting is that no one in the middle, even WhatsApp users, cannot read your chat. The problem of chatting without encryption is that a hacker can read your conversation.
Chat on Arattai is not End-to-end encrypted. How safe is it?
Now, talking about Arattai, End-to-end encryption (E2E) is currently not available in chatting. Although basic encryption is available, it is not considered strong enough for privacy. The company has implemented end-to-end encryption for calling. This means that when you send a message from this app, it reaches the server of Zoho in the form that the company can read. Technically, Zoho can access your chat if you want. In addition, if the government or any agency asks for chat data from the company for any reason, then Arattai has the option to provide it. In such a situation, the possibility of hacking or data leak is also high.
What type of encryption is in Arattai?
According to the company’s website, voice and video calls on Arattai are end-to-end encrypted. The FAQ page of the website states that data is encrypted into storage and the secret chat feature is equipped with end-to-end encryption. This does not apply to normal chats. The company also shows on its FAQ page that the user data will remain in India. However, it is not clear how the company is encountering users’ chats in real-time to prevent hackers from reading chats. Significantly, cyber criminals can track users’ chats from miles away.
No mention of encryption on FAQ page!
Companies that claim to be a safe chat app usually provide information about the encryption protocol used on their FAQ page. Encryption is mentioned here, but it is clear that end-to-end encryption is available for calling and private chats. However, no other encryption is mentioned. Public documents of the aratai also lack cryptographic details, ie AES-256, RSA and Signal Protocol/Double Rachhet. It is not clear which of these are being used.
WhatsApp uses signal protocol
The signal protocol is considered the gold standard of encryption. The signal protocol was developed by an American non-profit organization, Signal Foundation. It is considered the world’s most reliable encryption system.
The good news is that it is an encryption protocol open source. This means that anyone can audit its source code and design.
Cryptographers and safety researchers have audited it many times and found that it actually secures chat, and even the company itself cannot read it.
In 2017, researchers at the University of Oxford, University of London and Macmaster did an independent study and found that it is one of the strongest encryption methods available in the world.