SKYPE. Google Hangouts. Zoom. Facebook's Messenger Room. And now Telegram’s getting into the game with a coming support for group video calls.

In a blog post from Telegram:

The current global lockdown highlighted the need for a trusted video communication tool. Video calls in 2020 are much like messaging in 2013. There are apps that are either secure or usable, but not both. We'd like to fix that, and we will focus on bringing you secure group video calls in 2020.

I’m a big believer in secure and private messaging apps. Telegram is one such app. I won’t go into the nitty-gritty details of how and why Telegram is secure. If you’re into diving deep into tech, do check out this Tech FAQ from Telegram.

Meantime, this imminent entry of Telegram into the group video calls industry is something that excites me. I’m not saying that the other services are not secure. I’m sure they’re doing all they can to make sure their services are secure or will be secure. Zoom even released updates to make their service more secure. I’m only advocating that if you’re on board a service that you know already is secure, an additional service that’s also as secure as the first one is something to pay attention to.

And in this time we are in right now, more and more people are logging more time in messaging apps and group video calling services. Moreso if you’re on a work-from-home arrangement with your employer. Getting in touch with family members who are away is also becoming more imperative these days. And I can’t stress enough to keep in mind your data privacy and security when you’re online. The constant reminder that I have for everyone is to make sure that you get on a service that you know you can trust and will respect your privacy and keep you secure.

If you really can’t help but use some company’s services because everybody else is there, at the very minimum, have a to-do list of how to keep yourself secure in the virtual world. Use a passphrase instead of a password. Enable and use 2-factor authentication if that’s available. Just a couple of suggestions to help get you started.

Stay at home. Stay safe.