Now, you can chat in private without the Internet or a data plan with FireChat

Firechat has now added a private chat option that works even without an Internet connection or cellular phone coverage. Private messages are encrypted and can only be seen and read by the sender and the recipient.

All you need is a few people using FireChat to create your own network for public and private communications. You will be automatically connected directly with one another, creating your own network for public and private communications. The more people use it, the bigger and faster your network becomes.

How does FireChat work?

FireChat creates a mesh network using Bluetooth and peer-to-peer WiFi. FireChat transmits messages and pictures offline between devices that are located within 200 feet of one another. Due to FireChat’s multi-hop and store-and-forward capabilities, FireChat users form a network that increases in size with the number of devices. It allows messages to hop from one device to the next in order to reach the recipient(s). This is why the more people use FireChat, the better and the larger the network becomes (unlike with cellular networks).

On the mesh network, messages are transmitted seamlessly from one device to the next in order to reach the recipient(s). When an Internet connection or cellular network is available, FireChat uses them to reach remote recipients.

FireChat can be used in situations where the cellular network goes down in the case of natural calamities like floods or in places where the network connectivity is poor. Last year, FireChat was used by Iraqis when the Government blocked the Internet in some places.