Secure Messaging Scorecard gives you a look at which apps keep your info private

When you consider just how much of our personal information if used, scanned, and sold by the companies who provide our email and social media, it's understandable people are worried about online security. The issue has brought about a wave of apps which market themselves as secure messaging options, but exactly how secure are they?

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has put together a Secure Messaging Scorecard to provide a better idea of exactly which messaging tools and apps are actually secure, and the results are interesting. Apps are judged by a number of different parameters for messages including:

• Encrypted in transit

• Encrypted so the provider can't read it

• Can you verify contacts' identities

• Are past communications secure if your keys are stolen

• Is the code open to independent review

• Is security design properly documented

• and Has the code been audited

Of the apps surveyed only TextSecure and CryptoCat managed a perfect score across all parameters, but Apple's iMessage service also ranked highly. The only two areas the service was marked down on were "can you verify contacts' identities" and "is the code open to independent review." If you have questions about iMessage's security it's nice to know that it scored better than a number of services which like to rest specifically on their security laurels.

To read the Electronic Frontier Foundation's complete report, as well as details about their methodology, head over to their website.