#privacy

End-to-end encryption protects message content but leaves metadata such as identities, IP addresses, and contact patterns visible to network observers. This piece compares six chat apps by how much metadata they remove, using the LINDDUN framework of identifiability, linkability, and detectability: Signal's centralized encryption, Session's decentralized onion routing, SimpleX's identifier-free queues, Keet's serverless peer-to-peer connections, Cwtch's Tor-only routing, and Briar's offline mesh. No single app suits everyone. Each one trades privacy guarantees against everyday convenience, so the right pick depends on your threat model.