Good news scandalous iPhone users. A new app from Toronto called Quimby Messenger helps users “reduce the risk or sending sensitive information” by sending anonymous messages and photos that self-destruct after reading and vanish from the recipient’s phone and any servers.
The app is being marketed for privacy purposes, but with a slogan like “Some things weren’t meant to last forever” the real reasons seem thinly veiled as a way to help users wipe their hands. And by thinly veiled I mean not at all. Quimby created an infograph (above) full of stats on sexting (59 per cent of 20-somethings admit doing this), scandals and police intervention.
The app claims to never associate your name or email to your account and that once the messages have self-destructed they are completely erased from the server. While still in existence, the messages are encrypted to avoid association. The messages cannot be saved, downloaded or forwarded through Quimby. While some phones have screen capture apps or abilities that could be used, the sender won’t be associated with the content.
I suppose it could be used for more advantageous purposes. Quimby acknowledges that while most of us don’t participate in criminal activity, we do still want our private lives to be kept private. Quimby thinks everyone has a right to privacy and the content of messages is irrelevant. With phone hacking scandals, this app might come in handy for media sources or even police investigations. Twitter mentions suggest it is also great for late night drunk texting.
The app is available from the iTunes store for 99 cents. It is not yet available for Android or BlackBerry, but there is an option to receive notification when it is so that must be coming soon.
Other existing apps do similar things. The most predominant being TigerText, an app originally inspired by the Tiger Woods scandal. It has since been rebranded to appeal to healthcare and corporate clients. Case studies show doctors using the self-destructive texts in their firm. Unlike Quimby, TigerText is a group system that requires both users and senders to have the account. It is not anonymous, but rather the messages self-destruct after 60 seconds. It’s free and consumer editions are available on all platforms.
On a sidenote, Quimby Messenger is also the name of a grey stallion horse that died back in 1837. His grandfather, Messenger, is famous for being imported to the States from England just after the American Revolution – and for great-grandfathering the American Standardbred breed (race horses). No word if this is at all related.
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Sheena Lyonnais writes about tech for Toronto Standard. You can follow her on Twitter at @SheenaLyonnais.
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