End-to-end encrypted rooms

From the Business plan, a room can be end-to-end encrypted (German UI: Ende-zu-Ende-verschlüsselt). Messages, attachments, voice messages, files, notes, whiteboards and the voice / video call of the room are then encrypted on the members' devices. Coviqo stores only ciphertext and cannot read the content – not even the operator of the servers.

Setting up encryption on your devices (once)#

Open Settings › Account & security › End-to-end encryption and click Set up now.

• Coviqo creates your keys on this device and shows your recovery key – 13 groups of letters and digits. It is shown only once: copy it into your password manager or save it as a file, then tick I stored the recovery key safely.
• Optionally add a passphrase (at least 12 characters) as a second way to restore.

Every further device (another browser, the desktop app, a new laptop) has to be confirmed before it can read encrypted rooms. In the same settings card choose one of:

• With recovery key – type it in (spaces and case do not matter),
• With passphrase,
• Confirm from another device – a request appears on one of your confirmed devices. Both screens show the same six symbols and a six-digit number; only if they match, click They match – confirm there.

The card also lists your devices. Remove a lost or old device: it receives no new keys and the rooms it could read get a new key (what it already had stays readable on that device – removing is not a remote wipe). Remove this device deletes all keys from the current browser – do this on shared computers.

Important: if you lose all your devices and the recovery key (and the passphrase), your earlier encrypted content is lost. Coviqo cannot restore it. The last resort, Reset encryption, gives you new keys – earlier encrypted content stays unreadable for you, and your contacts see a changed safety number.

Turning on encryption for a room#

People who manage the room and the space open Room settings › Access › Encryption and click Turn on end-to-end encryption. The dialog lists what is no longer available in the room:

• AI (transcription, summaries, translations, thread summaries, voice message transcripts),
• recordings of calls,
• full-text search of the content (room and people names stay searchable),
• bots and incoming webhooks, slash commands,
• AutoMod content checks (mention limits still apply),
• watching together, link previews, live components,
• the malware scan of uploads, server previews, history, comments and export of notes and whiteboards,
• integrations such as creating an issue from a message or Notion.

Existing content stays as it was (encrypted on the server) and is labelled; older notes and whiteboards become read-only. The switch cannot be undone – for the other features again, create a new room.

New members see earlier messages is off by default: new members only get keys from the time they joined. Turn it on in the same place if newcomers should read the history.

Using an encrypted room#

• A lock next to the room name shows that the room is end-to-end encrypted.
• If this device is not set up or not confirmed yet, the room shows a hint and you cannot write – open the settings from the hint.
• New members and new devices get the room key automatically from a member who is online. Until then a message shows Key missing – requested from the members.
• Files and voice messages are decrypted in your browser when you open them. Uploads are limited to 500 MB per file.
• Folder names in the Files tab are encrypted like file names; searching for folder names is not possible.
• In calls of the room, audio, video and screen shares are encrypted; recording is not possible.
• Meetings started from the room are not end-to-end encrypted. Direct messages have their own switch per conversation (see End-to-end encrypted direct messages below).

Safety numbers#

In Room settings › Access › Encryption › Members and safety numbers click Compare next to a person. Compare the numbers or the symbols with that person – in person or on a call. If they match, click They match – mark as verified. If a person's safety number changes (they reset their encryption, or something is wrong), Coviqo warns you and gives them no new keys until you accept the new number.

End-to-end encrypted direct messages#

Every direct conversation – 1:1 or group, in every plan – can be end-to-end encrypted as well. By default conversations stay encrypted on the server (with search and AI); the switch is per conversation and covers its messages and calls.

1. Set up encryption on your device (see above).
2. In the conversation open … › Turn on end-to-end encryption (Ende-zu-Ende-Verschlüsselung einschalten).
3. The dialog lists what is no longer available in this conversation: AI features that use the content, searching the content, bots with access to content, link previews, transcripts of voice messages, virus scan and thumbnails of attachments. Tick I understand that encryption can only be ended if every participant agrees and click Turn on encryption.

Anyone in the conversation can do this; everyone sees the note End-to-end encryption turned on by ….

• A lock shows encrypted conversations: in the conversation header, next to the conversation in the list, under the message box (End-to-end encrypted) and in the call header. Hover it for an explanation.
• The list shows the decrypted preview of the last message when your device has the key (otherwise Encrypted message). Notifications only say New encrypted message – the text never appears in push notifications or e-mails.
• Searching: Coviqo's server cannot search encrypted messages, so your device does it. It keeps an encrypted index of the messages it could decrypt (older messages are added step by step in the background). Hits appear on the search page with the label found on this device; the magnifier in the conversation header searches only this conversation (in encrypted rooms: Search this room). Signing out deletes the index.
• Messages from before stay as they were. People who are added to a group later only see messages written after they joined.
• Calls of an encrypted conversation are end-to-end encrypted too (the call header shows End-to-end encrypted). Only people in the conversation can be added to such a call, and you need encryption set up on the device you answer with.
• … › Compare safety numbers lists the other participants with their state (not set up, not verified, verified, changed). Above the chat Coviqo warns when someone has not set up encryption yet (they can read new messages only after that) or when a safety number changed.
• Not possible: conversations with a bot, conversations you cannot write in (blocked, your organisation's rules), while a call is running (turn it on afterwards), or when an organisation of a participant does not allow encrypted direct messages. The dialog tells you the reason.

Ending end-to-end encryption#

Encryption of a conversation only ends if everybody in it agrees (in a 1:1 conversation both of you, in a group all current participants).

1. … › End encryption › Send request. You agree by asking.
2. Everybody else sees a note in the chat and a banner with Agree and Decline (and who has agreed so far). You can withdraw your request there.
3. When the last person agrees, the note End-to-end encryption ended (everybody agreed) appears. New messages, attachments and calls are then encrypted on the server again, with search and AI. Messages from the encrypted period stay end-to-end encrypted and readable on your devices; they can no longer be edited.

The request ends without effect if anyone declines, if someone joins or leaves the conversation, or after 7 days. It is not possible while a call is running. You can turn encryption on again at any time – with a new key.

Reporting a message#

When you report a message of an encrypted room, you can send its decrypted text to the moderators (preselected). It is signed by your device. Coviqo cannot check that the text matches the encrypted original – moderators see this note.