2023 • The Safe Video Calling Apps for Android and iOS Phones
There are numerous video calling apps out there. But, only these are safe!
Worried about others snooping in on your conversations?
Every day, thousands of personal video chats of innocent people are leaked on the Internet, wreaking havoc in their lives!
So, we put to test all the top video calling apps available in the market to see which are safe!
Did You Know? Did you know that CU-SeeMe, released in 1992, was among the earliest video conferencing software applications that enabled users to make video calls over the Internet? This groundbreaking technology was developed by Tim Dorcey at Cornell University.
Protect Your Privacy: The Safest Video Calling Apps for Android & iOS Phones in 2023
How We Tested? We evaluated all the top video calling apps for security, reliability, features, and performance on our test device. We then obtained the data from trusted sources to compile the eScore or Electrons Score and thereby come up with the safest video call/chat apps for both Android and iOS for your use.
1. Signal Private Messenger
Signal is one of the most popular private messenger apps used by millions of security-conscious people across the globe.
End-to-End Encryption
Yes
Surveillance capability built into the app?
No
Can messages be read by the company?
No
Company’s general stance on customers’ privacy
Excellent
Does the company provide a transparency report?
Yes
Snowden’s Favorite: It became famous overnight when American intelligence agency CIA’s ex-employee Edward Snowden said that Signal is the only app he believes to be absolutely safe and secure.
Safest Video Calling App: Signal is funded by the Freedom of the Press Foundation, Open Technology Fund, Signal Foundation, Open Whisper Systems, and other trustworthy organizations. Signal allows you to send text messages, images, files, do voice/video calls, and more. You will definitely appreciate Signal’s enhanced audio and video quality.
End-to-End Encryption: Anything you send on Signal is fully encrypted with its very own advanced end-to-end encryption technology that is the best in the world. It assures users that no one other than the sender and the intended recipient is able to see messages, video/voice calls, and attachments.
Password & Disappearing Messages: The app also allows you to set a password to lock it. So even if your phone falls into the wrong hands, your messages will still be protected. The Disappearing Messages feature allows you to send/receive messages that disappear after a certain time has elapsed. You can disable the screenshots too.
Complete Privacy: Signal is an open-source project, so anyone can view its code. This kind of transparency allows for routine auditing and helps ensure that the app’s security is always up to date. Run by a non-profit organization, Signal has no ads and no creepy tracking. It’s hard to ask for much more than that in terms of privacy.
Recommended: Having said all that, like most other messaging apps, it is buggy at times and has its problems. Overall, a very safe video calling app that is 100% recommended!
Viber is one of the most popular communication apps in certain regions of the world. Yet, it has always remained in the shadow of WhatsApp.
End-to-End Encryption
Yes
Surveillance capability built into the app?
No
Can messages be read by the company?
No
Company’s general stance on customers’ privacy
Satisfactory
Does the company provide a transparency report?
No
High-Quality Calls: It allows you to share various multimedia files, emojis, stickers, texts, locations, contacts, and more. The voice and video calls are of high-quality. The audio quality is simply crystal-clear and needs a special mention.
Complete Encryption: All chats, video, and voice calls are end-to-end encrypted on Viber by default. Also, nothing you share is ever stored on Viber’s servers once delivered. Viber’s end-to-end encryption is based on the ‘double ratchet’ protocol found in Open Whisper Systems Signal application. This makes it a secure video calling app for both Android and iOS platforms.
Hide Conversations: Interestingly, you can hide conversations from your main chat list and access them whenever you need to with a PIN.
Timer Messages: Secret Chats feature lets you set a self-destruct timer for every message in your conversation. So right after your message is read, it’s automatically deleted.
More Control to You: Control when others can see your online status and delete a message even after it was sent. You can call landlines or non-Viber users with Viber Out’s low-cost international calling service.
Meet is an intuitive video calling app from the stables of the search giant Google. Millions across the globe use Meet to communicate with their family and friends.
End-to-End Encryption
Yes
Surveillance capability built into the app?
No
Can messages be read by the company?
No
Company’s general stance on customers’ privacy
Satisfactory
Does the company provide a transparency report?
Yes
User-Friendly: The real appeal of Google Meet (previously Duos) is its simplicity. The interface is clean and has only one real focus – find a contact easily and initiate a call. Google Meet is specifically built for video calls.
End-to-End Encryption: Meet video calls are end-to-end encrypted by default. No one, including Google, can trace your calls or know what you converse! That is why this is a secure video calling app.
HD Video Calls: It provides the highest quality video calls in 720p HD, which work well, even on slow networks. Call quality adjusts to changing network conditions to keep you connected. Meet can also automatically switch between Wi-Fi and cellular networks without dropping the call.
Knock Knock: Not just video calls, you can make voice-only calls too. You can leave a video/voice message for contacts who are unavailable. The nifty Knock Knock feature allows you to see live video of the person calling you, even before you answer.
Past Issues: It is true that Google has been caught in the midst of various privacy issues in the recent past. The challenge, however, is that Google’s been notorious for building and discarding different messaging apps every few years.
Line is an easy-to-use messaging app that has earned a strong reputation in many countries in Asia as well as the West.
End-to-End Encryption
Yes
Surveillance capability built into the app?
No
Can messages be read by the company?
No
Company’s general stance on customers’ privacy
Good
Does the company provide a transparency report?
Yes
Awesome Stickers: With Line, you can share messages, photos, videos, stickers, voice messages, and locations easily with friends.
Engaging: You can also enjoy great quality voice and video calls, no matter wherever you are. Video chatting on the Line app is engaging with the use of various special effects and filters.
Total Encryption: By default, Line secures all text messages and video/voice calls with end-to-end encryption with a feature called ‘Letter Sealing.’ Only the sender and recipients can view messages/calls. The app uses the ECDH protocol for encryption. ECDH is an anonymous key agreement protocol that allows two parties to establish a shared secret over an insecure channel.
It’s Social: Line also has a timeline feature, much like Facebook/Twitter, that allows users to post pictures, text, and stickers on their homepages. However, a few years back, under the political pressure of certain countries, Line had reportedly done keyword filtering and emoji censorship.
Landline Calls: The Line Out feature allows you to call people who are not on the Line app by using their mobile or landline numbers at lower prices. You can also make calls using Line Out for free by viewing ads too.
WhatsApp is the most popular instant messaging app in the world, connecting billions of people. It is a free, cross-platform app owned by Facebook.
End-to-End Encryption
Yes
Surveillance capability built into the app?
No
Can messages be read by the company?
No
Company’s general stance on customers’ privacy
Satisfactory
Does the company provide a transparency report?
Yes
Best Voice & Video Calls: With WhatsApp, you can send text messages and voice messages, make voice and video calls, and share images, documents, user locations, and other media.
Fully Encrypted: All messages, voice/video calls on WhatsApp are completely encrypted. For this, it makes use of the Open Whisper Systems Signal Protocol, which is absolutely good. It ensures only you and the person you’re communicating with can see what is sent, and nobody in between, not even WhatsApp.
Secure: The optional two-step verification feature allows you to add more security to your account by setting a PIN that is required to verify your phone number on any device. The new Disappearing messages feature in WhatsApp is incredible. Once enabled, new messages in the chat will disappear after the duration you select.
Doesn’t Store Data: Further, WhatsApp doesn’t store your messages on its servers. So, even Law enforcement agencies who turn up at its offices get access to nothing. Overall, this is a very safe video calling app.
Problems: However, it is not advised to back up your WhatsApp messages to the cloud since that would deliver unencrypted copies of your message to the cloud provider. Previously, WhatsApp has had some security flaws, but there were all promptly fixed at the earliest. Recently, WhatsApp has started sharing user data with its parent company Facebook, and that has made us rank it last in our list.
Most of the time, it’s the shady apps/malware that results in the hack. Users unknowingly download such apps that easily gain access to the camera and mic. The app/malware gives away all the personal information to a hacker who then leaks it. Remember! Always download apps from the official app store or trusted sources.
Other times, videos are directly recorded by the person you’re communicating with using a screen recorder app and leaked. So please make sure the person you are video chatting with is 100% trustworthy.
With that said, the safe video calling apps mentioned in this article are best recommended for personal and private video chats with your close ones.
Did You Know?
Did you know that the concept of video calling has roots dating back to the 1920s? Bell Labs and AT&T were early pioneers in this field, experimenting with video communication long before the digital age. However, the technology faced significant hurdles, such as limited bandwidth and exorbitant costs, which prevented it from becoming a widespread reality. It’s fascinating to consider how far we’ve come since those early endeavors in video calling technology.
Author:Nik is an experienced author with 14 years in software and tech, holding an IT Engineering degree and a Data Science Master's from Liverpool University. Disclaimer: This website's content is created by humans and refined by AI for better grammar, flow, and clarity.
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