Open Whisper Systems (abbreviated OWS) was a software development group
that was founded by
Moxie Marlinspike
Moxie Marlinspike is an American entrepreneur, cryptographer, and computer security researcher. Marlinspike is the creator of Signal, co-founder of the Signal Technology Foundation, and served as the first CEO of Signal Messenger LLC. He is als ...
in 2013. The group picked up the
open source development of
TextSecure and RedPhone, and was later responsible for starting the development of the
Signal Protocol
The Signal Protocol (formerly known as the TextSecure Protocol) is a non- federated cryptographic protocol that can be used to provide end-to-end encryption for voice calls and instant messaging conversations. The protocol was developed by Open ...
and the
Signal
In signal processing, a signal is a function that conveys information about a phenomenon. Any quantity that can vary over space or time can be used as a signal to share messages between observers. The '' IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing' ...
messaging app. In 2018, Signal Messenger was incorporated as an LLC by Moxie Marlinspike and
Brian Acton and then rolled under the independent 501c3 non-profit
Signal Technology Foundation
The Signal Foundation, officially the Signal Technology Foundation, is an American non-profit organization founded in 2018 by Moxie Marlinspike and Brian Acton. Its mission is "to develop open-source privacy technology that protects free expres ...
. Today, the Signal app is developed by Signal Messenger LLC, which is funded by the Signal Technology Foundation.
History
2010–2013: Background
Security researcher
Moxie Marlinspike
Moxie Marlinspike is an American entrepreneur, cryptographer, and computer security researcher. Marlinspike is the creator of Signal, co-founder of the Signal Technology Foundation, and served as the first CEO of Signal Messenger LLC. He is als ...
and roboticist Stuart Anderson co-founded a startup company called
Whisper Systems in 2010.
The company produced