Is there a secure video chat that does not require a phone number?
I'd like to be able to chat from an Android phone without a SIM card.
Edit: Since several people have mentioned it, I'm including this note at the top. There are security issues with using a temporary number to register even if it is not needed to maintain the account. Anyone can gain access to the number and use it for account recovery, etc. I'm not an infosec person at all, but this seems pretty obviously bad. Some services will work fine with a landline or other permanent phone number, as long as you retain private access to the number.
the usage of the free meet.jit.si service, is not free of tracking, requires authentication at either Google, GitHub, or Facebook and is hosted at AWS which is not considered GDPR-compliant.
Thanks, I'm going to check this out. Seems pretty straightforward which is good for the family to use
3
ShellMonkey - 2day
If you feel like setting up a stun/turn server it's possible to set up your own using something like xmpp or next cloud talk. Works for individual accounts with friends if not a plug and go app.
6
zdanger @lemmy.world - 1day
I have an ejabberd server setup for my family for this reason. Using the Conversations app off F-Droid and Gajim on desktops
2
Zachariah @lemmy.world - 2day
Threema
It’s around $5 for the app. No phone number needed. End-to-end encryption for chat and calls (audio/video). Desktop versions are in beta.
iOS and Android
4
gedaliyah - 21hr
This looks promising. I Like that it has group video as well. Thanks.
2
SpacePanda - 2day
Heres a cool new phone company that require no personal info Phreeli
4
snowdriftissue @lemmy.world - 1day
Phreeli is overpriced and doesn't actually grant much privacy despite their claims. Telecom providers can still have a field day with your location and sms/call data even if Phreeli isn't collecting that themselves, which is also really just a pinky promise at this point. There are also competing services already which don't require PII either but have more reasonable prices.
If you want a phone number just to sign up for signal or something just use jmp.chat smspool or mysudo depending on your needs.
GNU Jami though I had trouble getting it to work reliably, and you have to install an app. YMMV.
Jitsi is decent, especially if you don't mind using their server meet.jit.si (may have changed by now). It uses WebRTC (i.e. you can use it with just a browser) which I think is preferable to a mobile app.
I think there will inherently be some lag if you're using a mobile phone at the client side, because of all the codecs, wifi latency etc.
This shouldn't be that hard a technical problem especially if you're ok with audio-only. I don't know why the existing programs all have probs in some areas. Jitsi is nice to use but a pain to self-host from what I can tell.
I have a self-hosted nextcloud that has a video chat feature (Nextcloud Talk) but it's not great.
I have been wanting to spend a chunk of time looking into the situation and finding a good answer, or at least identifying the trade-offs clearly.
Note that most services requiring a phone number for registration don't actually require that phone number to be connected to a SIM card in the device you're using. That may be helpful depending on your use case.
2
lennybird @lemmy.world - 1day
Side note but I was literally just thinking the other day that the accelerated rise of corruption and right-wing pivot of the globe also coincides with encrypted / anonymous communications. Mobsters and state actors must be having an absolute field day this past decade.
1
surewhynotlem @lemmy.world - 21hr
If the Epstein files have proven anything, it's that these idiots use plain text email.
2
Lemmchen @feddit.org - 2day
Not ideal, but I think Discord is offering E2EE for voice and video chat now.
I'd really like to see some research into them, though, to know how good/bad it is.
I don't know where to even start.
Alternative: XMPP has been around for 25+ years, can be self-hosted, there's numerous solutions available.
1
ragica @lemmy.ml - 14hr
NextCloud has end-to-end encrypted voice and video chat, and of course a whole bunch else, since people are mentioning self-hosting. The corresponding Android app "nextcloud talk".
1
IngeniousRocks (They/She) - 13hr
Nextcloud talk does not support E2E on mobile, web client only. I was just setting it up the other day and was very surprised when I saw this.
gedaliyah in asklemmy @lemmy.world
Is there a secure video chat that does not require a phone number?
I'd like to be able to chat from an Android phone without a SIM card.
Edit: Since several people have mentioned it, I'm including this note at the top. There are security issues with using a temporary number to register even if it is not needed to maintain the account. Anyone can gain access to the number and use it for account recovery, etc. I'm not an infosec person at all, but this seems pretty obviously bad. Some services will work fine with a landline or other permanent phone number, as long as you retain private access to the number.
Jitsi
With Jitsi you can also self-host the server-side components if that's your thing: https://jitsi.github.io/handbook/docs/devops-guide
isn't that all google code?
Is it? I had no idea that was a potential accusation.
Edit: just did a quick search and found nothing indicating Jitsi is Google.
8x8 collects and gives to google https://jitsi.org/meet-jit-si-privacy/
and
the usage of the free meet.jit.si service, is not free of tracking, requires authentication at either Google, GitHub, or Facebook and is hosted at AWS which is not considered GDPR-compliant.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jitsi
matrix is much better.
Oh thanks!!!
Last I checked matrix doesnt support videochats out of the box. A lot of people use jitsi plugged in to matrix deployments to handle this
From all of us who donate to FSF.org To the world
A Free-as-in-speech-and-beer solution
Happy Newton's birthday
https://jitsi.org/
SimpleX chat does video calls.
Thanks, I'm going to check this out. Seems pretty straightforward which is good for the family to use
If you feel like setting up a stun/turn server it's possible to set up your own using something like xmpp or next cloud talk. Works for individual accounts with friends if not a plug and go app.
I have an ejabberd server setup for my family for this reason. Using the Conversations app off F-Droid and Gajim on desktops
Threema
It’s around $5 for the app. No phone number needed. End-to-end encryption for chat and calls (audio/video). Desktop versions are in beta.
iOS and Android
This looks promising. I Like that it has group video as well. Thanks.
Heres a cool new phone company that require no personal info Phreeli
Phreeli is overpriced and doesn't actually grant much privacy despite their claims. Telecom providers can still have a field day with your location and sms/call data even if Phreeli isn't collecting that themselves, which is also really just a pinky promise at this point. There are also competing services already which don't require PII either but have more reasonable prices.
If you want a phone number just to sign up for signal or something just use jmp.chat smspool or mysudo depending on your needs.
This is good to know, thank you!
I'm also looking at https://www.cape.co/
https://jami.net/ has an android app
Matrix.
GNU Jami though I had trouble getting it to work reliably, and you have to install an app. YMMV.
Jitsi is decent, especially if you don't mind using their server meet.jit.si (may have changed by now). It uses WebRTC (i.e. you can use it with just a browser) which I think is preferable to a mobile app.
I think there will inherently be some lag if you're using a mobile phone at the client side, because of all the codecs, wifi latency etc.
This shouldn't be that hard a technical problem especially if you're ok with audio-only. I don't know why the existing programs all have probs in some areas. Jitsi is nice to use but a pain to self-host from what I can tell.
I have a self-hosted nextcloud that has a video chat feature (Nextcloud Talk) but it's not great.
I have been wanting to spend a chunk of time looking into the situation and finding a good answer, or at least identifying the trade-offs clearly.
self hosted matrix instance here
It looks like Session has video calls in beta.
Note that most services requiring a phone number for registration don't actually require that phone number to be connected to a SIM card in the device you're using. That may be helpful depending on your use case.
Side note but I was literally just thinking the other day that the accelerated rise of corruption and right-wing pivot of the globe also coincides with encrypted / anonymous communications. Mobsters and state actors must be having an absolute field day this past decade.
If the Epstein files have proven anything, it's that these idiots use plain text email.
Not ideal, but I think Discord is offering E2EE for voice and video chat now.
https://keet.io/
I don't know how private/secure it really is, but Teleguard doesn't require a phone number.
I'd really like to see some research into them, though, to know how good/bad it is.
I don't know where to even start.
Alternative: XMPP has been around for 25+ years, can be self-hosted, there's numerous solutions available.
NextCloud has end-to-end encrypted voice and video chat, and of course a whole bunch else, since people are mentioning self-hosting. The corresponding Android app "nextcloud talk".
Nextcloud talk does not support E2E on mobile, web client only. I was just setting it up the other day and was very surprised when I saw this.