C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
TL; DR
- Sunbird is closing iMessage for Android for security reasons.
- Sunbird has informed users that its use will be discontinued for the time being.
- Sunbird said it would investigate reports that messages were not end-to-end encrypted.
The launch of Nothing Chats and its removal from the Google Play Store was a disaster that Android users won't soon forget. In fact, the launch was so bad that even the app based on Nothing Chats was shut down.
As first reported by 9to5Google, the Sunbird app has been shut down by its developers. The app is no longer listed on the Google Play Store and Sunbird users have been informed that the company has “decided to stop using Sunbird for the time being” while the security issue is investigated.
Sunbird is set to launch in 2022 and promises to bring iMessage compatibility to Android. It has extreme encryption and offers iMessage functionality, but claims not to collect user data. Since its inception, the program has only been available to those on the waiting list.
Last week, Nothing announced a partnership with Sunbird for the Nothing Chats beta. Nothing Chats is said to be based on the Sunbird architecture but developed by the Nothing team. The app was shut down and removed from the Google Play Store later that week after multiple reports revealed that the software was extremely secure and just as secret as advertised. Since then, no one has said that they delayed the launch of Nothing Chats to work with Sunbird and fix "some bugs."
Now Sunbird is following suit and doing the same with its app. The company's most recent statement reads:
Good evening everyone. We are currently investigating a security issue that occurred in the last 24 hours. Out of an abundance of caution and to protect your confidential information, we are temporarily closing Sunbird Media. We will keep you updated. Thank you and we sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.
Sunbird has not commented on the situation since deactivating the app. The Texts.com team found in its investigation that Sunbird uses HTTP instead of HTTPS, and Android developer Dylan Roussel said that messages are not end-to-end encrypted and that Sunbird stores thousands of media files in the cloud service Firebase save.
