The encrypted messaging application of Wickr, under the umbrella of Amazon, is shutting down
Wickr’s end-to-end encrypted messaging application, Wickr Me, under the umbrella of Amazon, announced that it will shut down next year. According to the information in the announcement, the application will close new user acceptance as of December 31, 2022. On December 31, 2023, the Wickr Me messaging application will completely cease its activities.
Let us remind you that Wickr, which was founded in 2011, reached great popularity in a short time. With the 2021 Amazon Web Services acquisition of Wickr, its popularity has waned day by day. Still, many journalists and whistleblowers continued to use end-to-end encrypted and self-destructing messages.
The shutdown will only affect the consumer version of Wickr. Among the customers served by Wickr’s other products are government agencies, military institutions, and large companies.
Although it is not included in the official statement, it is thought that the decision to be closed is related to the allegations that have been reflected in the press for a while. If you remember, Vice’s news about Wickr’s use in the drug trade in 2018 occupied the agenda for a while. The news in NBC News in June claimed that the app allowed it to send images of child abuse.
