Messengers
Gajim privacy rating
Desktop XMPP (Jabber) client for Linux, Windows and macOS that works with any standard XMPP server, with group chats, file transfer and optional OMEMO or OpenPGP end-to-end encryption.
Summary
Gajim scores 69 out of 100 (grade C) on the messengers criteria. It meets 5 of 8 criteria: open source, no trackers or telemetry, no ads or data sales, no phone number needed and decentralized. It partly meets end-to-end encrypted by default. It does not meet independent audit and metadata protection.
Score 69 out of 100. How scoring works
Criteria
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Yes
Open source Weight 3 of 3
Is all the source code needed to run the product public?
GPL-3.0, and it works with open-source XMPP servers.
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Yes
No trackers or telemetry Weight 3 of 3
Are the website and apps free of third-party trackers, with any analytics anonymous and any telemetry off by default?
No analytics or telemetry; the app only checks gajim.org for updates, and crash reports are sent only with the user's approval.
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Yes
No ads or data sales Weight 2 of 3
Is the product funded without advertising, ad targeting or selling user data?
Free software with no ads, supported by donations.
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No
Independent audit Weight 2 of 3
Has an independent security or privacy audit been published within the last three years?
No independent audit is published.
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Partial
End-to-end encrypted by default Weight 3 of 3
Are all chats, including groups, end-to-end encrypted by default?
OMEMO and OpenPGP are supported, but the default encryption setting for new chats is unencrypted.
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Yes
No phone number needed Weight 2 of 3
Can an account be created without a phone number?
Accounts are XMPP addresses on any server; no phone number is needed.
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No
Metadata protection Weight 2 of 3
Does the service minimize who-talks-to-whom metadata (for example sealed sender or no user identifiers)?
The user's XMPP server sees contacts, group memberships and who talks to whom.
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Yes
Decentralized Weight 1 of 3
Can people run their own server or talk peer to peer?
XMPP is federated, and Gajim connects to any server the user chooses.