While Apple has deployed an impeccable security system to iMessage and its inner workings, the company’s prized messaging service is far from perfect. AirMessage founder Cole Feuer believes that if Apple opens iMessage up to third-party developers, they may be able to improve the service in new ways. Feuer, who hails from Ottawa, Ontario, developed AirMessage when he was just 15. Apple is not so keen on losing its exclusivity with iMessage, and believes that bringing the service to other platforms will make user security exponentially harder to guarantee — even more so if the service goes open-source. AirMessage is available on the Google Play Store, where it has amassed over 100,000 downloads and a 4.3-star rating, and on the web.
AirMessage is an open-source, third-party iMessage client for Android and the web that aims to expand the reach of Apple’s exclusive ‘blue bubble’ iMessage service beyond the Apple ecosystem. Apple has been particularly adamant about bringing iMessage to other platforms, such as Android, and rumours of the iPhone manufacturer increasing iMessage’s reach have often failed to materialise. AirMessage’s goal isn’t to replace iMessage on systems where it isn’t yet accessible; rather, it’s to persuade Apple to make iMessage officially available on every device, online, and to anybody.
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He added, “however, I understand that some users want more control over their data. As such, I’m preparing to bring the same end-to-end encryption that AirMessage uses for direct connections to AirMessage Cloud. I hope to be launching this feature shortly, though for the time being, you may inspect its implementation on the connect-encrypt branch of the server, Android app, and web app, or compile and run it yourself!”.
As for security and privacy concerns with AirMessage? Feuer recently explained: “I know that one of the biggest strengths of iMessage is its privacy, and I don’t want AirMessage to have to compromise on that. All communications over AirMessage Cloud are encrypted with standard TLS. AirMessage’s privacy policy states that none of your messaging data passed through AirMessage Cloud is inspected or read in any way.”
