Although consumer messaging services such as WhatsApp have been offering end-to-end encryption for a while now, Slack and other leading business communications platforms still use weaker security methods to protect user privacy. Wire Swiss GmbH Is looking to fill the gap.

The Switzerland-based startup, which was founded by three Skype veterans, today launched a new security-centric messaging app geared toward business users. Dubbed Wire Teams, the product is based on the popular consumer chat service that the company released in 2014.

At the time, Wire was one of the first modern communications apps to support end-to-end encryption. Messages are scrambled before they leave the sender’s device to prevent any attacker that may intercept their traffic from reading correspondences. Moreover, the cryptographic keys used to encrypt the data are kept locally rather than on Wire’s servers, which means there’s no middleman to worry about.

Wire’s security-centered architecture is paired with a user-friendly interface. Besides its chat feature, the app also provides a teleconferencing capability along with support for file and screen sharing. Wire Chief Executive Officer Alam Duric told British tech blog Verdict that the new commercial offering was developed in response to the consumer version’s growing use among business workers.

Wire Teams augments the core feature set with capabilities designed to ease work-related communications. An administrative console lets managers centrally add or remove users, while a programming interface provides the ability to integrate with external services. Wire plans to launch an on-premises version in the future that will let companies host their deployments in-house instead of routing messages through its servers.

End-to-end encryption or not, the startup can expect fierce competition from the larger business communications providers out there. Slack Technologies Inc. alone boasts more than 6 million daily users as of September. But while it may not change the competitive balance of power, the entry of a fully encrypted messaging service could help potentially help nudge Slack and the other leading players into bringing their platforms up to par. This would represent a positive step for the industry as a whole.

Wire Teams is available for €5 (about $6.88) per user per month. The on-premises version, which is scheduled to launch next year, will reportedly be priced by the deal.

Image: Wire