A practical checklist for comparing private messengers
Most comparison pages are a competitor grid with one column mysteriously full of ticks. This one asks ten questions worth asking any encrypted chat app, and answers them for Livara — including the answers that count against us.
01 · The grid
The right-hand column gives questions to check in any messenger’s current documentation. It is not a scored comparison or a claim that all other products behave alike.
| The question | Livara Chat | What to check in any messenger |
|---|---|---|
| Are one-to-one messages end-to-end encrypted? | Yes — current secure chats use the hybrid-PQ LVR1 ratchet, and a send is refused rather than quietly downgraded | Check which direct-message modes use end-to-end encryption by default. |
| Are group messages end-to-end encrypted? | Compatible private groups use LGS1 sender keys to encrypt messages, edits, photos, videos, files and voice notes end-to-end. | Check text, media, history and membership changes separately. |
| Are channel messages end-to-end encrypted? | No. Channel content is public/broadcast and is labelled separately from encrypted group text | Check who can read channels and whether the product labels them separately from private chats. |
| Is the encryption resistant to a future quantum computer? | LVR1 combines post-quantum ML-KEM-768 with classical P-256 for key establishment. This targets a specific future-decryption threat; it is not a guarantee of whole-system security. | Not comparable as a category: published post-quantum deployments now differ materially by product and protocol |
| Does the server learn your password? | No. SRP proves knowledge without the wire ever carrying the password | Check the documented authentication flow and what credentials the server receives or stores. |
| Is who-you-talked-to hidden from the operator? | No. Routing and delivery metadata are stored so devices can sync in real-time | Check routing metadata, membership visibility and the published metadata threat model. |
| Can you verify the app you installed is the app that was published? | The published SHA-256 and local Proof Lab let you compare your file with the published digest. A match does not establish source equivalence or an independent security audit. | Check the distribution source, signing information and any published integrity checks. |
| Does a correct password alone restore your keys on a new device? | No, deliberately. The encrypted key backup needs your recovery phrase | Check which secrets recovery requires and whether it restores identity, message history or both. |
| Is there a phone number requirement? | No. An account is a username and a password | Check which identifiers are required and what other information may link an account to you. |
| Is it free? | Messaging is free, with no advertising or message-content processing for advertising. AI API features require Livara AI Pro. | Check free and paid features, advertising and the documented funding model. |
02 · How to choose
It is a question about who you are hiding from. These three answers point at three different apps, and only one of them is this one.
Livara encrypts direct and private-group text and media, but its first-contact directory and LGS1 member list are still server trust points. It is the wrong choice when you require an audited protocol or malicious-server-safe group membership today.
Verdict · Encrypted content, incomplete server-compromise modelLivara is the wrong tool. Routing, timestamps and membership are stored by the ordinary delivery path. Look at systems with integrated sealed sender, private group credentials and a published metadata threat model.
Verdict · Not thisThe APK digest is published and the Proof Lab hashes your file locally, but that proves only equality with the published artifact. It does not prove source correspondence, protocol correctness or an independent audit.
Verdict · Start at the Proof Lab03 · Frequently asked
There is no single most secure app for every threat model. Compare the exact conversation mode, key custody, metadata, recovery, available review evidence and the released client version. Livara documents LVR1 direct-message and LGS1 private-group encryption, with explicit limits.
Compatible private groups use LGS1 sender-key encryption for messages, edits, media, files, captions and voice notes. Older incompatible groups remain outside E2EE. Read the threat model for the server-controlled membership boundary.
Livara's LVR1 design combines ML-KEM-768 with P-256 for direct-message key establishment. That targets a specific future-decryption threat; it is not an independent security certification or a guarantee against a compromised device.
No. You create an account with a username and password. Signup does not require a phone number; this is not a guarantee of anonymity.
Choose your downloaded APK in the Proof Lab. Your browser computes SHA-256 locally and compares it with the published digest without uploading the file. A match is an integrity check, not a complete security audit.
Stop reading, start checking
The Proof Lab runs on your device and makes no network requests. It verifies the published artifact and the primitives — not the whole security architecture.
