Software:FireChat

From HandWiki
Firechat
Developer(s)Open Garden
Stable release
Discontinued
PlatformAndroid, iOS
Typemesh networking
LicenseProprietary
Websiteopengarden.com/firechat

FireChat was a proprietary mobile app, developed by Open Garden, which used wireless mesh networking to enable smartphones to pass messages to each other peer-to-peer via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or Apple's Multipeer, without an internet connection.[1]

Though it was not designed with the purpose in mind, FireChat was used as a communication tool in some civil protests.[2]

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,[3] followed on April 3 by a version for Android devices.[4]

In July 2015, FireChat introduced private messaging. Until then, it had only been possible to post messages to public chatrooms.[5]

In May 2016, FireChat introduced FireChat Alerts, which allowed users to "push" alerts during a specific time and in a specific place.[6] This feature was added for the benefit of aid workers doing disaster relief and stemmed from a partnership with the city of Marikina.[7]

Usage

FireChat became popular in 2014 in Iraq following government restrictions on internet use,[8][9] and thereafter during the 2014 Hong Kong protests.[10][2] In 2015, FireChat was also promoted by protesters during the 2015 Ecuadorian protests.[11] On September 11, 2015, during the pro-independence demonstration called Free Way to the Catalan Republic, FireChat was used 131,000 times.[12] In January 2016, students protested at the University of Hyderabad, India, following the suicide of a PhD student named Rohith Vemula.[13] Some students were reported to have used Firechat after the university shut down its Wi-Fi.[14]

Security

In June 2014, Firechat's developers told Wired that "[p]eople 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."[15] By July 2015, the FireChat developers claimed to have added end-to-end encryption for its one-to-one private messages.[5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Milian, Mark (30 December 2014). "Russians Are Organizing Against Putin Using FireChat Messaging App". https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-12-30/russians-are-organizing-against-putin-using-firechat-messaging-app.html. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Bland, Archie (29 September 2014). "FireChat – the messaging app that's powering the Hong Kong protests". The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/29/firechat-messaging-app-powering-hong-kong-protests. 
  3. ↑ Simonite, Tom (28 March 2014). "FireChat Could Be the First in a Wave of Mesh Networking Apps". MIT Technology Review. http://www.technologyreview.com/news/525921/the-latest-chat-app-for-iphone-needs-no-internet-connection/. 
  4. ↑ Yu, Alan (7 April 2014). "How one app might be a step toward internet everywhere". NPR. https://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2014/04/07/298925565/how-one-app-might-be-a-step-toward-internet-everywhere. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "FireChat launches new offline private messaging option". BBC. 30 July 2015. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-33718318. 
  6. ↑ Toor, Amar (19 May 2016). "This app lets rescue workers send offline alerts when disaster strikes". https://www.theverge.com/2016/5/19/11711686/firechat-alerts-app-natural-disaster-mesh-network. 
  7. ↑ Stinson, Elizabeth (12 October 2015). "This App is Building a Giant Network for Free Messaging". Wired. https://www.wired.com/2015/10/giant-network-for-free-messaging/. Retrieved 10 February 2018. 
  8. ↑ Kuchler, Hannah; Kerr, Simon (22 June 2014). "'Private internet' FireChat app grows in popularity in Iraq". Financial Times. https://www.ft.com/content/ef9602b0-f807-11e3-90fa-00144feabdc0. 
  9. ↑ Hern, Alex (24 June 2014). "Firechat updates as 40,000 Iraqis download 'mesh' chat app in censored Baghdad". The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jun/24/firechat-updates-as-40000-iraqis-download-mesh-chat-app-to-get-online-in-censored-baghdad. 
  10. ↑ "Faced with network surveillance, Hong Kong student demonstrators go P2P". Boingboing.net. 29 September 2014. http://boingboing.net/2014/09/29/faced-with-network-surveillanc.html. 
  11. ↑ Velazco, Alfredo (28 June 2015). "The Internet, a Staging Post for Protests in Ecuador, is Under Threat". http://globalvoicesonline.org/2015/06/28/the-internet-a-staging-post-for-protests-in-ecuador-is-under-threat/. 
  12. ↑ Borràs, Enric (17 September 2015). "L'aplicació amb què et podies comunicar a la Via Lliure també et servirà en una catàstrofe". Ara. http://www.ara.cat/societat/aplicacio-podies-comunicar-via-lliure-servira-catastrofe_0_1432056955.html. 
  13. ↑ "Hyderabad university shut after protests over Dalit student's death". BBC. 19 January 2016. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-35349789. 
  14. ↑ TNN (23 January 2016). "Firechat comes to UOH students' rescue". The Times of India (The Times Group). http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Firechat-comes-to-UoH-students-rescue/articleshow/50691376.cms. 
  15. ↑ Baraniuk, Chris (25 June 2014). "FireChat warns Iraqis that messaging app won't protect privacy". Wired (Condé Nast). https://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2014-06/25/firechat. Retrieved 28 January 2016. 



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