Wickr Roundup: Answering the Most Commonly Asked Questions

AWS Wickr is a secure and easy-to-use encrypted communications solution. It’s a sophisticated platform with a large collection of useful features, and sometimes our users have questions about certain features or how things work.

Wickr FAQs

Our tech support staff quickly responds to individual questions and comments regarding all of Wickr’s products. Here are ten frequently asked questions submitted by our users — and answered by our skilled tech staff.

What Devices is Wickr Compatible With?

Wickr supports the latest OS versions of most popular computers and mobile devices. In particular, Wickr supports devices running:

  • Android: 8.0 and up
  • iOS: 13.0 and up
  • Mac OS: X 10.13 and up
  • Windows: 10 and up
  • Linux: Snap package

What is Wickr’s Stance on Surveillance?

Wickr is founded on the belief that privacy is a fundamental right essential to any democratic society. We seek to enable our users to conduct private communications free from surveillance by a wide variety of actors. While we understand and respect that government and law enforcement agencies sometimes need information for investigative purposes, we believe that it is important that they gather this information within the confines of the law and not at the expense of user privacy and security.

Does Wickr Cooperate with the Government or Law Enforcement?

At Wickr we respect each individual’s right to privacy but are also committed to cooperating with the government and law enforcement. In particular, we will respond to requests for user information and notify that user of the request, when legally permitted to do so. Our response to requests for the contents of communications, however, will reflect that the content is not stored on our servers and, because it is encrypted and stored on users’ devices, not accessible to us.

What is Expiration and Burn-on-Read (BOR)?

For greater security, Wickr can be configured to delete messages after they’ve been received. On the Wickr platform, Expiration is the maximum time a message is allowed to live in a group or 1:1 conversation. Burn-on-Read is how long a message is allowed to live once it has been read by recipient(s).

What Does the Secure Shredder Do?

On most computers and computer platforms, technical experts can use special tools to recover data after it has been deleted. Wickr’s Secure Shredder “sanitizes” deleted data by overwriting that data, thus making it more difficult, if not impossible, for hackers to recover.

What Are Voice Memos?

A voice memo is a short spoken message you can send to rooms or conversations. Voice memos are fully encrypted and can be up to one minute long. To record a voice memo on your mobile device, tap and hold the microphone icon. To record a voice memo from the desktop app, click to start and click to end.

What Does “Out of Network” Mean?

Someone “In Network” for AWS Wickr is someone in your AWS Wickr network. Someone “Out of Network” is not currently in your network. To move someone “In Network,” you must invite them by email to join your network. Wickr Me users are considered “Out of Network” to all AWS Wickr accounts.

Can I Call Out of Network Users?

Both AWS Wickr and Wickr Me let you call both In Network and Out of Network users. In Wickr Me, you can only conduct 1:1 voice calls with Out of Network Users. AWS Wickr Basic, Gold, and Silver tiers can do 1:1 voice and video calling, as well as screen-sharing, with both types of users.

Are Phone Calls in Wickr Encrypted?

All calls in Wickr, including voice and video calls, are encrypted using our proprietary end-to-end encryption technology. Wickr also encrypts text messages, voice memos, pictures, files, and anything else that you send through the system.

Does Wickr Affect My Phone Bill?

Wickr does not require a phone number to work. Wickr sends all communications (including voice and video calls, text messages, and files) as encrypted data over the Internet to a user’s Wickr ID or email address. As such, Wickr does not affect phone minutes or SMS text limits. It can, however, affect your phone’s data usage, if your phone connects to the Internet via cellular data instead of through a Wi-Fi network or hotspot.

Choose AWS Wickr for Safe and Secure Communications

AWS Wickr is a robust and secure communications platform with a plethora of features designed to meet the needs of different users. The AWS Wickr platform includes voice and video calling, direct messaging, group collaboration, and file sharing, all protected by strong end-to-end encryption.