Messages with expiration date

“This message will self-destruct in five seconds.” This hackneyed phrase that we have seen in so many spy movies and series is the one that reigns in the world of messaging apps. Beyond the success of apps like WhatsApps either Line, platforms that offer a certain expiration date for shared content have sparked growing interest among users. Snapchat marked the way forward but there are many that already offer the option of destroying or encrypting our messages.

Obviously the most popular of all the outdated messaging apps is Snapchat. Appearing a couple of years ago, it has broken the mold and has been installed in the terminals of the youngest users. Eager to share their experiences but, at the same time, cautious, they have made this App one of their most faithful allies. And what is no small thing, it has shot up the volume of images shared via mobile, going from 200 million to more than 400 million per year to six months after its appearance. Its power is so great that some marketing agencies already include it as communication and promotion tool for your products.

In an attempt to jump into the ephemeral messaging arena and follow in the footsteps of Snapchat, Poke, launched by Facebook, which allowed setting a maximum time for messages to be displayed. The maximum time allowed to save content on the recipient's terminal was ten seconds. It was not long before its death and total disappearance was declared.

However, neither platform nor the other has been able to guarantee that traces of the message remain once it has been deleted or that it has even been possible to recover it. double or save to a telephone terminal.

Those who do offer this type of limitations are the people of Silent Circle, of whom we have already spoken to you on this occasion blog. Established as great guarantors of confidentiality and security, its messaging App is protected by the data encryption to be one of the most invulnerable on the market. However, its services, which also include encryption and protection of telephone calls, among others, have a price: 20 dollars a month.

More affordable options are such as Confide, which has also been very well received by the general public. With a data encryption base, it allows the transmission of confidential messages with a limited expiration date.

Wickr It is another of the options offered by the main markets, Google Play and Apple Store, to protect messages. Their service guarantees the elimination of all possible traces of conversations.

Hash, with a limit of seven seconds to read a message and the possibility of sending videos, or TigerText, an App more designed for corporate uses, are two more options to protect the mobile communications.

And if you want to know a little more about the use of Snapchat among the youngest, it is highly recommended to read this article that the specialized portal published a few weeks ago Mashable.