Signal introduces free and paid backup plans for your chats

In a significant update, the privacy-centric messaging platform Signal revealed on Monday that it is rolling out a new feature that allows users to back up their text conversations at no cost, along with media from the last 45 days. Additionally, the app has launched its first paid offering, providing users with the option to back up their media with a generous 100GB storage capacity. Previously, Signal did not support any form of backup for users' conversations, which posed a challenge for those who might lose or damage their devices. While users could transfer chats between phones, the absence of a cloud backup option made it difficult to safeguard their data. This new feature addresses that gap, enhancing Signal's value proposition as a secure messaging solution. The free backup plan comes with 100MB of storage for text messages and media from the last 45 days. According to Signal’s blog, the messages are stored after being compressed, and the 100MB limit should be adequate even for users who engage heavily with the app. For those needing more extensive media storage, Signal offers a subscription plan priced at $1.99 per month, which grants users 100GB of storage. This marks Signal's inaugural paid feature, with the company emphasizing that the subscription fees are intended to cover storage costs while prioritizing user privacy. Users can activate the backup feature through the app's Settings, which will initiate daily backups of their content. Employing zero-knowledge technology, Signal ensures that these backups remain secure and untraceable to individual users or payment methods. Upon activation, users will receive a unique 64-character recovery key generated on their device, which is essential for accessing their backups. In a competitive landscape, Signal’s introduction of this feature comes as rival apps like WhatsApp offer optional end-to-end backup solutions. Initially, this backup feature is available exclusively in the beta version of Signal's Android app, although the company has promised that cross-platform functionality will be introduced shortly. Future updates may also allow users to save backup archives to their preferred locations and to transfer message histories across different platforms.