Despite claims chat apps are not secure. Every time you use 1 of them you’re exposing yourself to having your messages hacked or intercepted. ‘Keybase’ is introducing a mobile & a Web app that will play well with most chat apps & greatly simplify the process of sending & receiving encrypted messages.
With Keybase you’ll no longer have to set up a secure channel by exchanging phone numbers or meeting in person. Keybase chat lets you use an existing social media handle as a secure address, for example your Twitter username.
Keybase maps your address to the Twitter handle & does the same for your interlocutor. Once Keybase receives verifications of both your identities from Twitter (or whatever social chat service you’re using), it establishes an encrypted inbox on both ends. Keybase’s stated aim is to allow for “end-to-end encryption with minimal friction”.
Unlike PGP or other public key schemes in which you have to manage private keys & move them around different devices, with Keybase each device generates its own keys & the private key never leaves the device.
Keybase supports command line commands, is scriptable & has an API interface, taking JSON as stdin & piping JSON to stdout. If you’ re a developer you can easily create an encrypted messenger bot, or broadcast unencrypted, signed, public broadcast messages…
The app is currently in alpha, so it’s in rapid development & can get a bit buggy at times. You can join the Alpha program by downloading it here, for macOS, Linux or Windows, or by getting the source code.
Once you’ve installed it you’ll get an icon on your System tray or menu bar, & new messages will light the icon up. You’ll need to create your Keybase account & connect yourself to as many social media accounts as you like. At least as many as the people you want to chat with are connected to. You can even establish encrypted group chats.
1 problem that you’ll likely have when getting started is that you’ll need an invite to join. If someone didn’t already invite you, the app will let you ask for a join code, which they promise will be sent to you soon.
Keybase is a US based startup. It was co-founded, among others, by OkCupid founders Chris Coyne & Max Krohn.
- This is a startup profile based on publicly available material & not a review -
Image Credit: Keybase
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