The questions people ask most — what Cinderous is, how it protects your privacy, and how it differs from other messengers.
Cinderous is open-source, forever-free, privacy-first decentralized messaging. Messages are end-to-end encrypted (Nostr NIP-44 / Gift Wrap), storage is local-first, and relays keep no online state — plaintext and private keys never leave your device. It runs on desktop (Windows) and in the browser.
Only the people in the conversation. Messages are end-to-end encrypted with NIP-44 and wrapped with NIP-17/59 Gift Wrap — the sender is hidden behind a one-time key, so relays see neither the content nor who sent it. Plaintext exists only on your own device, encrypted at rest via the OS keychain or a local password. (Note: to receive contacts' online status, the relay does learn your contact list; self-host a relay if you want even that kept private.)
No. On first launch your device generates a cryptographic keypair; your public key (npub) is your unique identity across the whole network. No phone, no email, no real name — there is no central database holding your contacts.
Cinderous is built on the open Nostr protocol, so anyone can self-host a compatible relay and interoperate — there is no single company-controlled server. It also uses WebRTC P2P for calls, files and presence (bypassing relays), and deliberately restores the classic instant-messenger experience (floating chat windows, contact groups, status text). Unlike Signal it needs no phone number and depends on no single operator.
Yes — forever free, no ads, no in-app purchases, no data sales. The code is AGPL-3.0 open source. Official relay costs are covered by voluntary donations, published with signed funding transparency. You can also self-host entirely, depending on no official infrastructure.
Your data (messages, contacts, settings) lives encrypted on your own device — that is the single source of truth. Relays only forward ciphertext and briefly hold offline messages with an expiry (7 days by default); they persist no online state. A relay can run on Cloudflare Workers, Docker, or a Raspberry Pi, and anyone can self-host one.
Yes. Enterprise mode supports a self-hosted closed node (an allowlist admitting only organization members), org rosters with invite-code onboarding, offboarding takeover, and company settings such as retention days. Data stays entirely on the company's own infrastructure, and the relay only ever sees ciphertext and member public keys.
Cinderous offers three device-migration paths: an encrypted backup code you hold yourself, an opt-in encrypted cloud snapshot (relays see only ciphertext), and desktop pairing clone (a one-time P2P full transfer confirmed via a short SAS code, with content never touching a relay). Since there is no key escrow, registering an important identity on two devices is recommended for redundancy.