Privacy

Messages

Messages between two Ask'a clients are encrypted on the device with X25519 and AES-256-GCM. The server stores this ciphertext.

When either party uses a legacy ICQ client, the server stores the message as plaintext.

What the server sees

The server sees your UIN, nickname, buddy list and presence, as well as payment data from Stripe.

The lock icon

The lock icon is shown only after a message has been successfully decrypted on your device. A message without the lock icon should not be treated as encrypted.

Account

No phone number is required. You set a secret question. An email address is required so the account can be recovered.