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Sunbird , which aims to bring iMessage to Android users , has halt development and pull its app from the Play Store amid surety issues raised this week .
Earlier this week , the company send a notification to its users , as noted by9to5Googlefirst , saying that it is hesitate the development of the app to inquire security measure concerns .
“ We have temporarily close down the Sunbird app while we do a detailed security analytic thinking . We will revert back to the biotic community as soon as we are cognizant of the precise occurrences and our architectural plan to mitigate them move forward , ” the companionship said on its Discord on November 19 .
Multipleuserson the Sunbird subreddit noted that they had receive a notification from the company about the app ’s shutdown .
“ We have been working around the clock on the app to address the concerns that were raised and improve the experience . Navigating the press and our partner obligations kept us from sending a message earlier . Lots going on still and we ’re committed to Sunbird ’s success , ” the company tell on its Discord on Tuesday in an update .
Sunbird message was founded in 2021 and has received a total of $ 2.9 million in support according to Crunchbase data . The companionship released its app in a closed program last December .
The app come into the glare when Nothing — a troupe started byOnePlus carbon monoxide - founder Carl Pei — announced earlier this calendar month that it is using Sunbird ’s technology to bring iMessage to Android throughNothing Chats .
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However , after the announcement , multiple researchers pointed out surety flaw within the app , include messages being sent in plain schoolbook , as taper out ina blog postfrom Texts.com .
and an awful mysterious dive by@ridafkihdetailing the atrocious@sunbirdapp/@nothingchats security : https://t.co / Y6ZQxA0N4B
— Kishan Bagaria ( @KishanBagaria)November 18 , 2023
Other security researchers , including researcher Dylan Roussel , also pointed out that all messages and medium sent through Nothing Chats and Sunbird are public .
Thread time !
sum-up : – Sunbird has memory access to every subject matter sent and have through the app on your gadget .
– All of the document ( images , video , audios , pdfs , vCards … ) station through Nothing Chat AND Sunbird are public .
– Nothing Chats is not end - to - end encrypted .
— Dylan Roussel ( @evowizz)November 18 , 2023
nothing chats app ( skinned sunbird ) is an absolute privacy incubus that sends / stores ALL data unencrypted on firebase
and for whatever rationality it also sends ALL messages and attachments to sentry ( again , in plain text)pic.twitter.com / CxBS7TZwCl
— wukko ( @uwukko)November 18 , 2023
In reply to these claims , Nothing deplumate the Nothing Chats beta from the Play Store and suppose it would work with Sunbird to “ fix several microbe . ”
We ’ve removed the Nothing Chats beta from the looseness Store and will be stay the launch until further placard to work with Sunbird to fix several bugs .
We apologise for the delay and will do in good order by our users .
— Nothing ( @nothing)November 18 , 2023
Given the down bubble / unripened bubble water parting , many content aggregator apps have tried to resolve this trouble . The aforementioned Texts.com , whichwas acquired by WordPress.com proprietor Automattic last month for $ 50 million , offer iMessage on Mac and SMS with iMessage . Pebble founder Eric Migicovsky’sBeeperalso offers iMessage integration in some capacitance . However , there have been interrogative aboutthe seclusion andsecurity impactof these result .
All these developments come in amid news from Apple last week saying thatthe ship’s company will adopt RCS ( Rich Communication Standards ) — a superpowered alternative to SMS that let get off multimedia system messages with other feature — next year . While this might not solve the green and blue-blooded house of cards divide , user on Android would be capable to send high - Re photos and videos to their admirer and family using iPhones .
