Signal tops free app category after WhatsApp privacy row, here's why it is enjoying a golden run

Signal has climbed to the top spot in the free apps category followed by WhatsApp and YouTube.

New Delhi: Signal has climbed to the top spot in the free apps category of the App Store not just in India but several other countries.

Taking to Twitter the cross-platform encrypted messaging service, shared a screenshot which showed it being placed above WhatsApp at the top spot among other free apps in India. The tweet said: ""Look what you have done."

Look at what you've done. pic.twitter.com/0YuqyZXtgP — Signal (@signalapp) January 8, 2021

It also claimed to be the top downloaded app in Germany, France, Austria, Finland, Hong Kong, and Switzerland as well.

The reason can be attributed to WhatsApp's new privacy policy asking its users to either accept the changes in its Terms of Service and privacy policy by February 8 or their accounts will be deleted. It has been as part of an upcoming global roll-out for over 2 billion users. Since then more and more users are migrating to other messaging apps. 

While the popularity of the Signal app shot up further after the recently crowned 'wealthiest man on the planet' Elon Musk endorsed the app.

More than 100,000 users installed Signal while Telegram picked up nearly 2.2 million downloads, according to data analytics firm Sensor Tower.

What makes Signal App better than WhatsApp?

* The messaging app Signal is touted to be the world's most secure app and there is no fear of user data being shared. 

* Signal App does not ask for users' personal data like WhatsApp is resorting to do in the name of privacy.

* It also does not send unsecured backups of users to the cloud and it keeps the encrypted database secure in your phone.

* The Signal App has a 'Data Linked to You' feature which means no one can take the screenshot of that chat messages. 

* Another popular feature of the Signal App is that your old messages automatically disappears.

The Signal app has been developed by a non-profit company, the Signal Foundation and Signal Messenger LLC. It is a messaging app and works on iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows, Mac and Linux.