Indian Army launches safe WhatsApp-like app called ASIGMA

The Indian Army has announced the launch of an internal messaging application called ASIGMA (Army Secure Indigenous Messaging Application), which is considered the "new generation, state of the art, web-based application." The application is developed entirely by a team of officers from the Army Signal Corps. In a post on PIB (Office of Press Information), the app is said to be being deployed on the Army's internal network as a replacement for the Army Wide Area Network (AWAN) messaging app, which has been in service for the past 15 years. That said, the app will not be making its way to mainstream app stores.

The notes read that the ASIGMA application has been deployed on Army-owned hardware and is supported for life with future updates. In addition, the app hopes to offer a more secure messaging network for internal use, rather than relying on external servers like WhatsApp and Signal that are subject to privacy concerns.

The ASIGMA application will meet all the "futuristic user requirements" with a simplified user interface. We can expect the app to offer basics like group chats, image and video sharing, voice memos, and more. The press release further stated: "Es [ASIGMA] has a variety of contemporary features including multi-level security, message prioritization and tracking, dynamic global address book, and various options to meet Army requirements.

The messaging app will meet the Army's real-time data transfer and messaging requirements, especially in the current geopolitical security environment, and is in line with the Government of India's Make in India initiative.

The Indian Army is also planning to go digital and paperless wherever possible and pursue that commitment. "ASIGMA will further boost these efforts and will add to the host of other applications already being employed by the Army over its captive pan Army network," the note highlights.