Every privacy tool makes promises. The honest ones also tell you what they cannot do. This is our threat model, written so a non engineer can follow it.
We protect you from the operator
The strongest guarantee is structural. Because messages are encrypted on your device and the relay keeps no readable copy, the company that runs Light Speed has no content to hand over, even under pressure. There is no key on our side to turn.
We protect you from the relay
The relay nodes are untrusted by design. They see only ciphertext and metadata like timing and destination tokens. Post quantum ready key exchange means a future quantum computer cannot retroactively decrypt what it captured today.
What we cannot protect you from
- A compromised device. If your phone is rooted or your screen is recorded, no protocol helps. Keep your device clean.
- The person you send to. A recipient can photograph the screen with another device. View once limits, it does not abolish, that risk.
- You losing your keys. With no server copy, we cannot recover your conversations. That is the cost of true ownership.
Trust the math, not the brand. The code is open so you can confirm the math yourself.
If a claim here ever sounds too good, that is a bug in this document, tell us and we will fix it.