A

MINI PROJECT REPORT

ON
Topic: Data Privacy – Signal Messenger App

SUBMMITED BY

CLASS: MBA-MKT-02

MS. KHUSHI SHARMA: 2023-2106-0001-0006

MR. KISHAN TRIVEDI: 2023-2505-0001-0070
MS. M. PAVANI: 2023-1808-0001-0004
MS. MEENA MALCHE: 2023-0109-0001-0016

TO

PUNE INSTITUE OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

 Topic – Data Privacy – Signal Messenger

❖ Title – Understanding User Perceptions towards Signal's Privacy Features.

❖ Literature Review-

❖ Research Article:

❖ Sr. Research Paper Authors

No.
1 Data security and privacy protection Y Sun, J Zhang, Y Xiong, G Zhu
issues
2 Protection of big data privacy - A Mehmood, I Natgunanathan, Y Xiang, G
Hua
3 The role of data privacy in marketing KD Martin, PE Murphy
4 Data privacy: Definitions and S De Capitani Di Vimercati, S Foresti
techniques
5 Data privacy and data protection: the
right of users and the responsibility Alafaa Princess Uche-Awaji
of companies in the digital world.
6 Big data privacy a technological Priyank jain, mansi gyanchandani, nilay
perspective and review khare
7 Explaining the privacy paradox: A Nina gerber, paul gerber, melanie volkamer
systematic
review of literature investigating
privacy attitude
and behavior
8 Young people and their engagement Kathlene M Armour
with health-related social media: new
perspectives
9 ‘Personal data literacies’: A critical Luci pangrazio, neil selwyn
literacies approach to enhancing
understandings of personal digital
data.
10 Data Privacy: Effects on Customer and Kelly D martin, abhishek borah and Robert
Firm Performance W. palmatier

Company Name – Signal Messenger

Initial Release date – 29th July 2019
Introduction to the company
Signal Messenger is a non-profit organization and messaging app known for its focus on user
privacy and security. Founded in 2014 by Moxie Marlinspike and Stuart Andersen, it uses
open-source, peer-reviewed cryptographic protocols to secure its communication channels.
This dedication to transparency and strong encryption has earned Signal a reputation as one of
the most secure messaging platforms available.
Key Features:
▪ End-to-End Encryption (E2EE): Messages are encrypted on the sender's device and can
only be decrypted by the intended recipient, making them inaccessible to Signal servers
or third parties.
▪ Open Source: The Signal app code is publicly available, allowing independent
verification and contributing to its security.
▪ No User Data Collection: Signal doesn't collect or store user data like metadata,
contacts, or content, further enhancing privacy protection.
▪ Disappearing Messages: Users can set messages to disappear automatically after a
specific timeframe, adding another layer of control over their communications.
Research Gap:
Limited understanding of user trust.
Focus on specific demographics
Impact of usability on perception
Comparison with privacy trade-off
❖ Problem Statement:
To ensure Signal Messenger remains a preferred choice for users seeking privacy-centric
communication, there is a need to conduct comprehensive market research aimed at
understanding the current user perception and satisfaction with the app's privacy features.
Management Decision Problems:
1. Monetization Strategy:

Problem: Deciding on a sustainable monetization strategy without compromising user

privacy.
Decision Challenge: Balancing the need for revenue with the commitment to user
privacy and maintaining the app's reputation.

2. User Growth vs. Privacy:

Problem: Managing the trade-off between increasing user base and maintaining high-
level encryption and privacy features.

Decision Challenge: Deciding whether to implement features that might attract a larger
user base but could potentially compromise certain privacy principles.

3. Feature Development:
 Problem: Prioritizing feature development to stay competitive in the messaging app
market.
Decision Challenge: Determining which new features to prioritize without
compromising the app's simplicity and focus on privacy

4. User Feedback and Requests:

Problem: Managing user feedback and feature requests while maintaining the app's
simplicity.
Decision Challenge: Prioritizing user feedback and feature requests in a way that aligns
with Signal's core values and goals.

Market Research Problem:

Assessing User Perception and Satisfaction with Signal's Privacy Features.
Comparative Analysis: Comparing Signal's privacy features with those of other messaging
apps in the market. This helps in understanding the competitive landscape and identifying areas
where Signal excels or where improvements are needed to maintain its position as a preferred
choice for privacy-focused users.
Demographic Factors: Analyzing how user demographics, such as age, location, and
technological literacy, may influence their perception and satisfaction levels. This allows for
tailoring privacy features to specific user groups if necessary.
Educational Initiatives: Examining the effectiveness of Signal's educational efforts in
informing users about the privacy features available, aiming to identify areas where user
education can be enhanced for better comprehension and utilization of these features.

Research Questions:
1. How aware are current and potential users of the privacy features offered by Signal?
2. How satisfied are users with Signal's existing privacy features, such as end-to-end encryption
and disappearing messages?
3. When it comes to messaging apps, what privacy aspects (e.g., encryption, data storage) do
users consider most important?
4. How does Signal stack up against its main competitors in terms of privacy features? What
are Signal's strengths and weaknesses in this area? Are there any opportunities to improve, and
what potential threats does Signal face regarding user privacy?

Research Objectives:
1. Assess the level of awareness among current and potential users regarding Signal's
privacy features.
2. Gauge user satisfaction with Signal's existing privacy features, including end-to-end
encryption, disappearing messages, and other security measures.
3. Determine the relative importance users place on different privacy aspects (e.g.,
encryption, data retention policies) concerning messaging apps.
4. Compare Signal's privacy features with those of key competitors to identify strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Hypothesis
Null Hypothesis - H0: There is no significant relationship between user awareness and
data privacy

Alternate Hypothesis -H1: There is significant relationship between user awareness

and data privacy

Variables:

Independent Variable: User perception towards Signal Messenger's privacy features.

Dependent Variable: The level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction expressed by users in

relation to Signal Messenger's privacy features.
 PART II

Questionnaire

1. Name:
2. Age:
3. Occupation:

Likert Scale:
Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly
Agree Disagree

4. I am aware that Signal offers privacy features for

messaging.
5. I can easily identify and explain the main privacy
features of Signal.
6. I feel comfortable using Signal because of its focus
on privacy.
7. Signal’s end-to-end encryption feature makes me
confident my messages are secure.
8. The disappearing messages feature in Signal is a
valuable privacy tool for me.
9. How important is it for a messaging app to encrypt
messages end-to-end?
10. Compared to other messaging apps I use, Signal
offers superior privacy features.
11. When choosing a messaging app, I prioritize
features that protect my privacy over features offered
by competitors.
12. How likely are you to recommend Signal to others
based on its privacy features?
DATA COLLECTION:

Interpretation:

• The 21-30 age group dominates the survey responses, constituting the majority.
• Both the 19-20 and 31-40 age groups exhibit similar response counts.
• The 41 and above category has a smaller representation, with a mix of responses.

Interpretation:

The pie chart is divided into several segments, each corresponding to a gender
category:

o Male: The largest segment, occupying 61% of the chart.

o Female: The second-largest segment, representing 36.6%.
o Prefer not to say: A smaller segment, indicated in orange.
 o Others: Another small segment, shown in grey.

Interpretation:

• The majority of respondents fall into the “Service” occupation category.

• Other occupations are less represented in the survey.
 DATA ANALYSIS USING SPSS

CHI SQUARE TEST

1. Formulate Hypothesis:
H0: There is no significant relationship between user awareness and data privacy
H1: There is significant relationship between user awareness and data privacy

2. Statistical Test: Chi-square Test

3. Level of Significance: 5%

4. Output:

Chi-Square Tests

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2- Monte Carlo Sig. (2-sided) Monte Carlo Sig. (1-sided)
sided) Sig. 95% Confidence Sig. 95% Confidence
Interval Interval

Lower Upper Lower Upper

Bound Bound Bound Bound

Pearson Chi-Square 55.838a 16 .000 .002b .001 .003

Likelihood Ratio 28.025 16 .031 .015b .013 .018
Fisher's Exact Test 24.247 .026b .023 .029
Linear-by-Linear 8.443c 1 .004 .002b .001 .003 .001b .001 .002
Association
N of Valid Cases 40

a. 24 cells (96.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is .03.
b. Based on 10000 sampled tables with starting seed 624387341.
c. The standardized statistic is 2.906.

Interpretation:

From the above chi square test results that P=0.000 is > than 0.05 and at 5% LOS. Hence we reject H0
and accept H1 hypothesis, so it can be concluded that there is no significant relationship between user
awareness and data privacy
 FACTOR ANALYSIS USING SPSS

Output:

KMO and Bartlett's Test

KMO and Bartlett's Test

Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy. .595

Approx. Chi-Square 91.205

Bartlett's Test of Sphericity df 45

Sig. .000

Interpretation:

From the above table we can interpret that KMO and Bartlett’s Sphericity table it indicates
that KMO value is 0.595 which is > 0.5 it shows sampling Adequacy & Bartlett’s test of
Sphericity value P= 0.000 < 0.05, it indicates significance of co relation. Hence, we can say
that data is appropriate for Factor Analysis.

Total Variance Explained

Total Variance Explained

Component Initial Eigenvalues Extraction Sums of Squared Rotation Sums of Squared

Loadings Loadings

Total % of Cumulative Total % of Cumulative Total % of Cumulative

Variance % Variance % Variance %

1 2.943 29.433 29.433 2.943 29.433 29.433 2.551 25.512 25.512

2 1.543 15.425 44.858 1.543 15.425 44.858 1.495 14.951 40.463
3 1.212 12.118 56.976 1.212 12.118 56.976 1.387 13.872 54.334
4 1.086 10.864 67.840 1.086 10.864 67.840 1.351 13.505 67.840
5 .944 9.445 77.285
6 .670 6.701 83.986
7 .614 6.141 90.127
8 .463 4.633 94.760
9 .292 2.918 97.678
10 .232 2.322 100.000

Extraction Method: Principal Component Analysis.

Interpretation:
From the above total variance explained table it shows that total variance explained by
majorly 4 factor 67.84%
F1= 29.433%
F2= 15.425%
F3= 12.118%
F4= 10.864%
Above table also indicates that majorly 4 factors can be extracted because 4 components
eigenvalue > 1

Scree Plot

Interpretation:

It is the graphical representation of Eigenvalue vs No. of components it shows that majorly

4 factors extracted out of 10 variables in the case study.
 Rotated Component Matrix

Rotated Component Matrixa

Component

1 2 3 4

I am aware that Signal offers privacy features for .782 .314 .001 .111
messaging.
I can easily identify and explain the main privacy features .850 .118 -.016 -.034
of Signal.
I feel comfortable using Signal because of its focus on .770 -.172 .210 -.056
privacy.
Signal's end-to-end encryption feature makes me .569 .392 .001 -.169
confident my messages are secure.
The disappearing messages feature in Signal is a valuable .304 .234 .659 .427
privacy tool for me.
How important is it for a messaging app to encrypt -.305 .214 .020 .651
messages end-to-end?
How important is it for a messaging app to have a clear .001 .796 .037 -.117
data retention policy?
Compared to other messaging apps I use, Signal offers .120 -.246 .022 .807
superior privacy features.
When choosing a messaging app, I prioritize features that .316 .636 .109 .162
protect my privacy over features offered by competitors.
How likely are you to recommend Signal to others based -.037 .010 .945 -.091
on its privacy features?

Extraction Method: Principal Component Analysis.

Rotation Method: Varimax with Kaiser Normalization.a
a. Rotation converged in 6 iterations.

INTERPRETATION:
F1: Factor Awareness Signal
F2: Factor data recovery
F3: Factor recommendability Signal
F4: Factor Preference Signal