My niece has an old iphone with no SIM/phone number. Only wifi internet access.
Looking for an app for both of us to be able to chat
She cant chat with me over signal because no phonee number. She chats with the rest of the family over imessage, but i have an android phone
Is there an app available for both android and iphone to let me chat with her?
Thanks
Edit: willing to self-host for extra privacy. My nieces and nephews are all young children so i definitely want to encourage/educate them to get off corporate controlled communications channels
Matrix / element
To expand with my personal experience, I self host a synapse server partly for the reason that i want my children (aged 8-14 now) to have a communication platform they can access to get ahold of me with out requireing a sim card. I do not federate, and i do not allow account sign ups. That keeps a pretty isolated instance while still allowing everyone on that homeserver to be able to talk to each other.
I help them get Element setup on each device. I dont think this is overly complicated, but i am sure i am a horrible judge of complexity… They have to enter the url of the server, then their password, then they need to scan a qr code/verify from an existing device. Or, they need to enter a second passcode to verify their identity. I help them keep those secrets in bitwarden, so imo, that complexity is an opportunity to explain some opsec and encryption!
WTH dude… You can send letters. Unfortunately it’s IRL only and isn’t at all what you asked for
Briar fits the requirements.
No need for sms. Works over the internet, wifi only, or Bluetooth. As long as everyone has android it’s a great option.
That being said simplex is probably the right answer here, but no reason to antagonize the person who suggested a valid option.
How can it be a valid option when it is only available on android and the reason why OP is having this issue, is that the niece is on an iPhone?
Threema.
It costs $5 dollars, so you’re less likely to be the product. Highly private. Includes some open source code. Audited. Android and iOS. Doesn’t require phone number.
Here are the settings I recommend during first setup: Tap next instead of making a Threema Safe password Tap next instead of entering your phone number Turn off “Sync contacts”
Telegram will allow her to use a virtual number
Telegram isn’t private. Their privacy practices align more closely to Facebook than Signal.
Signal is no longer requiring phone numbers as of V7, so you could just wait for that to get released.
