No clean-sweep table here. This puts Cinderous next to Signal, LINE and WhatsApp based on public information — including what we haven't finished yet. Find the row you care about.
| Dimension | Cinderous | Signal | LINE | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phone number required to sign up | Not required — your key is your identity | Required¹ | Required | Required |
| End-to-end encryption by default | ✓ All messages | ✓ | △ Texts & locations (Letter Sealing); not all content | ✓ |
| Who can see who you talk to (metadata) | Largely hidden — Gift Wrap ciphertext + one-time senders | Partially protected (sealed sender) | Visible to the platform | Visible to the platform, part of Meta |
| Open source | ✓ AGPL, clients + relay | ✓ Clients + server | ✗ | ✗ |
| Server architecture | Decentralized multi-node; anyone can self-host | Centralized | Centralized | Centralized |
| Where your messages live | Only on your device; offline queue is ciphertext with auto-expiry | Your device | Servers / cloud backup | Device + optional cloud backup |
| Business model | Open source + donations — no ads, transparent funding | Nonprofit donations | Ads & commerce | Meta's business ecosystem |
| Platform can suspend your account | No single platform can | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Forward secrecy | Implemented (experimental) | ✓ | Undisclosed | ✓ |
| Feature maturity | In development | Mature | Richest | Mature |
¹ Signal usernames can hide your number, but registration still requires one.
All trademarks and product names belong to their respective owners. Comparison based on public information (as of July 2026); official product documentation prevails where they differ. On the forward-secrecy row: ours is **implemented but has not been through an independent cryptography audit**, is off by default, and must be enabled manually; the products marked with a check have been through multiple external audits. These are not equivalent, which is why we do not use a check mark.
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