WhatsApp's new terms of service have resulted in an exodus of users moving to alternative, "more secure" messaging services. While there a bunch to choose from, Telegram and Signal seem to be the most popular of all. Shortly after the former added 25 million users in 72 hours, the latter has crossed the 50-million mark on the Google Play Store.

Signal is an encrypted messaging service that has been endorsed by the likes of Edward Snowden and Elon Musk. Compared to services such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, it doesn't collect any metadata that can be linked back to the user and also encrypts all sorts of communication: voice calls, video calls, and messages.

The app hits the 50-million mark shortly after it topped app store charts around the world. It gained momentum after users took to social media to criticize WhatsApp's new policy. On Sunday (January 10) alone, about 810,000 users globally installed Signal, according to research firm Apptopia.

To keep up with the expectations of the newly-arrived users from the feature-rich WhatsApp, the encrypted messaging service is also actively working on expanding its feature set. It recently increased the group call limit from five to eight and is in the process of rolling out features such as chat wallpapers and animated stickers.

Thanks: Anurag Thakur