A comprehensive technical overview of the security architecture, cryptographic methods, and privacy protections that make Cipher Messaging one of the most secure messaging platforms available.
The foundational principles that guide every design decision in Cipher Messaging.
Never Trust, Always Verify
No component of the system—be it the app, network, or hardware—is inherently trusted. Every action is verified, ensuring that only authenticated users can access their messages and data.
Leave No Digital Footprint
Traditional messaging apps store metadata like who you're talking to, when, and from where. Cipher Messaging eliminates all metadata, ensuring no digital footprint is left behind.
Only You and Your Recipient
Every message is encrypted on your device before transmission and can only be decrypted by the intended recipient. No one—not even Cipher Messaging—can read your messages.
No Central Point of Failure
Cipher Messaging operates without central servers. All communication is peer-to-peer, making it impossible to shut down or compromise the entire network.
Industry-leading cryptographic algorithms chosen for maximum security and performance.
Cipher Messaging uses XChaCha20-Poly1305, an authenticated encryption algorithm designed to securely encrypt and authenticate messages.
XChaCha20 is a variant of the ChaCha20 stream cipher, widely regarded for its speed and security. Poly1305 is a message authentication code (MAC) that ensures the integrity of the message by verifying that it has not been tampered with during transmission.
XChaCha20 is designed to provide high security even with very large amounts of data. It is particularly well-suited for mobile devices due to its performance in software.
Plaintext
256-bit Key
XChaCha20
Stream Cipher
Poly1305
MAC Auth
Authenticated Ciphertext
Encrypted + Verified
Follow your message's journey through our zero-knowledge architecture
Compose message
XChaCha20-Poly1305
Local storage
Ping-Pong protocol
Tor network
Auto-delete
Compose message
Your message is drafted locally on your device
XChaCha20-Poly1305
Military-grade authenticated encryption applied
Local storage
Encrypted data stored only on your device
Ping-Pong protocol
Mutual authentication before transmission
Tor network
Anonymous routing hides your identity
Auto-delete
Message destroyed after reading
Mutual Authentication System
From Creation to Deletion
Created & Encrypted
XChaCha20-Poly1305 encryption on device
Stored Locally
Encrypted queue awaits recipient
Authenticated
Ping-Pong verifies both parties
Tor Transmission
Anonymous multi-hop routing
Delivered & Erased
Permanently deleted after reading
Defense in depth: Hardware-level protection combined with network anonymity ensures your messages remain secure from device to delivery.
Complete Network Anonymity
Every message travels through the Tor network's multiple encrypted relay layers, ensuring your IP address and physical location remain completely hidden from all network observers, ISPs, and even other users.
How it protects you: Tor creates an encrypted tunnel through three random relays before reaching its destination. Each relay only knows the previous and next hop—never the full path—making traffic analysis practically impossible.
Anonymous Message Route
ISP Blind
Your internet provider can't see who you're messaging
Location Hidden
Recipients never learn your physical location
Traffic Analysis Resistant
Pattern-based monitoring becomes ineffective
Secure Enclave & StrongBox
Every private key used for encryption and signing is generated and stored exclusively within hardware security modules—Secure Enclave on iOS or StrongBox on Android—making them physically inaccessible to software, malware, or even the operating system itself.
Unbreakable isolation: These hardware modules operate on separate processors with dedicated memory. Even if your device is compromised, attackers cannot extract your private keys—they simply don't have access to the hardware vault where they're stored.
Security Layer Architecture
Tamper-Proof Design
Physical attempts to access trigger self-destruction
Biometric Gatekeeper
Face ID or fingerprint required for key operations
Malware Immune
Even device compromise can't extract private keys
Local Encryption
All data encrypted on-device
Zero Cloud Data
Keys never leave your device
Biometric Lock
Face ID & Touch ID support
Secure Deletion
Cryptographic erasure
Our comprehensive threat model defends against sophisticated adversaries, from passive observers to state-level surveillance operations.
Entities monitoring network traffic without actively interfering
Cipher Messaging ensures that no one can passively monitor your communication. All messages are encrypted and metadata is eliminated.
Someone monitoring your network traffic can't see who you're messaging, what you're saying, or even that you're using a messaging app.
Built-in panic features that ensure your data self-destructs rather than falling into the wrong hands
Instant Self-Destruct System
When under coercion, entering your secret Duress PIN triggers immediate cryptographic destruction of all sensitive data. Attackers gain nothing, even if they force you to "unlock" the app.
Undetectable activation
The Duress PIN appears to unlock your app normally, giving no indication that data destruction is underway.
Key Destruction
Private keys permanently erased from secure enclave
Message Wipe
All conversations and queued messages deleted
Revocation Signal
Emergency broadcast sent to all contacts
Border agents demand you unlock your phone. You enter your Duress PIN—the device appears to unlock normally, but all encryption keys and messages are already destroyed. Even forensic analysis cannot recover the data.
Appears as normal unlock
Keys destroyed, messages wiped
Emergency signal to all contacts
Every message benefits from multiple layers of cutting-edge security technology working in concert.
E2E Encrypted
XChaCha20-Poly1305
Military-grade encryption
Tor Network
Anonymous Routing
IP address hidden
Hardware Keys
Secure Enclave
Physical isolation
Zero Metadata
No Data Logged
Complete anonymity
Forward Secret
Rotating Keys
Past messages safe
Auto-Delete
Timed Erasure
Configurable cleanup
256-bit
Encryption Strength
Post-quantum ready
0 Logs
Metadata Collected
Complete privacy
3+ Hops
Network Relays
Maximum anonymity
Military Grade
Encrypted
Verified
Zero Trust
Our security architecture is designed by cryptography experts with military-grade encryption. Experience privacy protection that defends against even nation-state adversaries.