Encrypted messaging app Signal continues to see spiking downloads in the wake of the messaging scandal, which saw The Atlantic’s editor in chief Jeffrey Goldberg added to a group chat where high-ranking officials in the Trump administration were discussing an attack on Houthi rebels in Yemen. The resulting press coverage around the leak of these sensitive plans has been driving more people to check out Signal’s app for the first time, leading to a doubling of its downloads.
According to app intelligence provider Appfigures, downloads rose by 26% on the day the news broke, an indication that users were curious about the app being used by members of the Trump administration. The next day, downloads jumped to 193,000 and by Wednesday hit an all-time high of 195,000, the firm noted.
By comparison, Signal typically sees an average of 95,000 downloads on an average day.
Appfigures has been tracking the impact of the scandal on Signal’s app from day one. It earlier found that Signal app downloads across iOS and Google Play had jumped up 28% on the Monday when the news initially broke, with U.S. downloads up by 45% and downloads in Yemen up by 42%.
The Trump administration has dismissed the seriousness of the incident, where the Atlantic journalist was accidentally added to a group chat between officials.
Although Secretary of Defense Peter Hegseth, who was in the chat with VP J.D. Vance and others, denied that “war plans” were shared through the encrypted chat app, the Atlantic later published the full message threads which showed officials discussing the time, location, and weapons the U.S. would use in the attack. Trump has since taken to attacking the media for its continued coverage of the incident.
Signal’s app itself was not compromised to allow for this leak. Instead, the journalist was accidently added to the thread. Waltz has accepted responsibility for making the group chat in the first place but has deflected blame over the embarrassing mistake.
Appfigures chalks up the doubling of downloads to the old adage “all press is good press,” as the scandal increased Signal’s visibility and likely introduced the app to thousands of users for the first time.
