Decentralized chatting applications
# Decentralized chatting applications

Decentralized chatting applications refer to messaging services that operate on a decentralized network, in contrast to the traditional centralized servers used by most mainstream applications. They offer an alternative form of communication that promises greater privacy, security, and censorship resistance due to their inherent features like end-to-end encryption, peer-to-peer (P2P) communication, blockchain technology, and use of distributed networks.

## History

While instant messaging has a history dating back to the 1960s with systems like the Compatible Time-Sharing System (CTSS) and Multics, the concept of decentralization for chat applications is relatively new. The concept started gaining traction with the advent of blockchain technology and the growing concern for privacy and data security in the digital age.

Early forms of decentralized chatting apps, such as IRC (Internet Relay Chat), had been in existence since the 1980s, but they lacked the robust security features that would later be introduced.

The introduction of blockchain and cryptographic technologies in the late 2000s and early 2010s sparked a new era for decentralized chatting applications. Platforms such as Signal, Tox, and later Status and Matrix.org's Riot.im (now Element), started using end-to-end encryption and decentralization techniques to secure user privacy.

