SimpleX Chat is an instant messenger that is decentralized and doesn’t depend on any unique identifiers such as phone numbers or usernames. Users of SimpleX Chat can scan a QR code or click an invite link to participate in group conversations.
-privacyguides.org
It’s clearly proving to be the most innovative technology when it comes to decentralized communication, in my opinion.
Not to mention, SMS was removed because it’s inherently insecure at every level. Keeping it would mean there’d be an insecure side channel into the protocol. While it’s a useful onboarding mechanism, it can also be abused — and was. So eventually it got removed to prefer privacy and security over convenience.
That’s a valid reason, prioritizing security over convenience. I forgot about the fact that texting is plain text communication.