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Q: Whatever happened to our promised Signal - WhatsApp compatibility? (lemmy.world)
submitted 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) by to c/privacy@lemmy.ml
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The news first came in 2024, but it's been very quiet since.

I've been waiting this whole time to jettison WhatsApp from my phone.

Is it available only in some parts of the world? If so can I spoof it?

We know that adversarial interoperability works, so why have we not been able to make this work?

All else failing, are there any unofficial WhatsApp clients I can use to preserve my privacy?

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[–] -4 points 6 months ago (4 children)

Who ever promised that? Just because both use Axolotl/Double Ratchet? hat is far from enough. Not to mention that neither Meta nor Signal Messaging have any economic incentive to do it...

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  • [–] [S] 4 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (1 child)

    Whoever promised that?

    Updated the description to clarify.

    The economic incentive from Signals point of view is that it allows them to steal users. Its a lot easier to switch if you don't have to drag 100% of people you know off a platform to remove their app.

    Look up adversarial interoperability if you're interested. It's how Facebook got big in the first place.

    As for Meta, the only thing they would gain is less scrutiny from regulators as Gatekeepers.

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  • [–] 2 points 6 months ago

    Thanks for the clarification.

    Well, I'd expect Meta to drag their feet as much as they can, tbh. So: Years and as many "regrettable" technical hiccups and UX inconveniences as they can get away with without having to pay too stiff a fine. Same as always.

    I am aware of adverserial interoperability, but, frankly, it's one of those ideas that make me chuckle benevolently. I don't see much practical merit in it. As for Facebook getting big that way in the first place: I strongly disagree. They got big by being early, good enough to capture the zeitgeist, and then being as anticompetitve as they could. Just like Microsoft before them, for example.

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