Sridhar Vembu Seeks Public Feedback on New Encryption Models for Arattai

New Delhi: Arattai, the Indian-made chat app by Zoho, is planning a big privacy update. Its co-founder, Sridhar Vembu, has proposed two new encryption models for the app and is asking users to share their thoughts before finalising the move.

Vembu shared a preview of the new Arattai chat design, which includes a dedicated tab marked “e2ee” - short for end-to-end encryption. This feature ensures that messages are only visible to the sender and receiver, not even to Arattai itself.

He explained that users will soon be able to make end-to-end encryption (E2EE) their default setting for all personal chats. Group chats will also get E2EE support later, though with some size limits initially.

Vembu presented two options for how the feature could work:

Option 1- Users can choose to make E2EE the default for all one-to-one chats or turn it on for selected chats. If one user enables E2EE, the chat will automatically switch to that mode, even if the other person hasn’t.

Option 2- Arattai could make E2EE the default for all one-to-one chats across the app, leaving no option for non-encrypted messaging.

Interestingly, Vembu noted that some users prefer cloud-based chats because they take up less device storage and make it easier to back up conversations. That’s why the team is considering Option 1, though he admitted Option 2 would be cheaper for the company to implement.

The post invited users to share their opinions, showing Vembu’s open approach to shaping Arattai’s privacy direction.

Arattai has been gaining attention as India’s answer to WhatsApp, with a focus on data privacy and local control. This move to strengthen encryption could further boost user trust, especially at a time when concerns about chat security and data sharing remain high.

As of now, there’s no timeline for when the new encryption update will roll out. 

Read More: What is Zoho's Arattai App? Learn more about India's first homegrown messenger app