FireChat was a proprietary mobile app, developed by Open Garden, which used

wireless mesh networking A wireless mesh network (WMN) is a communications network made up of radio nodes organized in a mesh topology. It can also be a form of wireless ad hoc network.Chai Keong Toh Ad Hoc Mobile Wireless Networks, Prentice Hall Publishers, 2002. A ...

to enable

smartphone A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, whic ...

s to pass messages to each other

peer-to-peer Peer-to-peer (P2P) computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads between peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the network. They are said to form a peer-to-peer ...

via

Bluetooth Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard that is used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances and building personal area networks (PANs). In the most widely used mode, transmission power is limit ...

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio w ...

, or Apple's Multipeer, without an internet connection. Though it was not designed with the purpose in mind, FireChat was used as a communication tool in some civil protests. FireChat is now discontinued. The official URL displays a 404 error page, and apps have not been updated since 2018.

History

The app was first introduced in March 2014 for iPhones, followed on April 3 by a version for

Android devices Android is a mobile operating system based on a modified version of the Linux kernel and other open-source software, designed primarily for touchscreen mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. Android is developed by a consortium of deve ...

. In July 2015, FireChat introduced private messaging. Until then, it had only been possible to post messages to public chatrooms. In May 2016, FireChat introduced FireChat Alerts, which allowed users to "push" alerts during a specific time and in a specific place. This feature was added for the benefit of aid workers doing disaster relief and stemmed from a partnership with the city of

Marikina Marikina (), officially the City of Marikina ( fil, Lungsod ng Marikina), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 456,159 people. It is loca ...

Usage

FireChat became popular in 2014 in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

following government restrictions on internet use, and thereafter during the

2014 Hong Kong protests A series of sit-in street protests, often called the Umbrella Revolution and sometimes used interchangeably with Umbrella Movement, or Occupy Movement, occurred in Hong Kong from 26 September to 15 December 2014. The protests began after th ...

. In 2015, FireChat was also promoted by protesters during the

2015 Ecuadorian protests The 2015 Ecuadorian protests were a series of protests against the government of President Rafael Correa. Protests began in the first week of June, triggered by legislation increasing inheritance and capital gains taxes. By August, an alliance of ...

. On September 11, 2015, during the pro-independence demonstration called Free Way to the Catalan Republic, FireChat was used 131,000 times. In January 2016, students protested at the

University of Hyderabad The University of Hyderabad ( IAST: ''Hydarāvād visvavidyālayamu'') is a top ranking public central research university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Founded in 1974, this mostly residential campus has more than 5,000 students ...

, India, following the suicide of a PhD student named Rohith Vemula. Some students were reported to have used Firechat after the university shut down its Wi-Fi.

Security

In June 2014, Firechat's developers told ''

Wired ''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San Fran ...

'' that " ople need to understand that this is not a tool to communicate anything that would put them in a harmful situation if it were to be discovered by somebody who's hostile ... It was not meant for secure or private communications." By July 2015, the FireChat developers claimed to have added

end-to-end encryption End-to-end encryption (E2EE) is a system of communication where only the communicating users can read the messages. In principle, it prevents potential eavesdroppers – including telecom providers, Internet providers, malicious actors, and eve ...

for its one-to-one private messages.

References

External links

* {{Instant messaging 2014 software IOS software Android (operating system) software Internet-related activism Mesh networking Defunct instant messaging clients

History

Usage

Security

See also

References

External links