This February, the Indian government introduced a brand-new messaging service called Sandes as an alternative to WhatsApp for employees. This Made-in-India texting app is now accessible to the general public, according to CNBC-TV18.
Sandes Messaging App Worthy WhatsApp Alternative?
According to the app’s description, Sandes is a native, open-source instant messaging platform created by the NIC, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India, to help with instant messaging communication in government organisations.
On Sandes, a phone number is necessary to register for a new account. You can set your name, gender, and profile picture once you’ve used the OTP to confirm the number. Name must be entered; however, gender and profile image are optional.
Four tabs for Chats, Contacts, Groups, and Account settings are located at the bottom. As shown in the image below, there is also a feedback option within the app.
You may access app settings, disable read receipts, log out, and even deactivate your account from the account settings page. If linking your Aadhaar account is something you’re interested in, Sandes also offers that feature.
Regarding privacy, Sandes enables end-to-end encrypted (E2EE) messaging and encrypted backups, according to the app’s description. On the other hand, Sandes’ privacy statement makes it abundantly apparent that the software gathers info. This includes the sender’s and receiver’s names, the size, date, and time of any instant or group messages, and the duration, date, and time of any audio or video calls.
The programme also gathers data about the device itself, including its hardware model, operating system, version, preferred language, time zone, and device identifiers. Also included is information about your Internet Service Provider (ISP). The privacy statement for the Sandes app is available here.
Although I won’t personally advise utilising a government-made app for your private chats, if you’re curious, you may check out the app using the links below. Additionally, if you’re seeking for other encrypted messaging apps, check out the article we linked to.
the Sandes app from the Play Store or the App Store.
