Kik (app)

Kik is a freeware instant messaging mobile app from the American company MediaLab AI, Inc., available on iOS, iPadOS, visionOS, and Android operating systems. The application uses a smartphone's internet connection to transmit and receive messages, photos, videos, sketches, mobile web pages, and other content after users register a username. Kik is known for its features preserving users' anonymity, such as allowing users to register without the need to provide a telephone number or valid email address. However, the application does not employ end-to-end encryption, and the company also logs user IP addresses, which could be used to determine the user's ISP and approximate location. This information, as well as "reported" conversations, are regularly surrendered upon request by law enforcement organizations, sometimes without the need for a court order. Kik was originally intended to be a music-sharing app before transitioning to messaging, briefly offering users the ability to send a limited number of SMS text messages directly from the application. During the first 15 days after Kik's re-release as a messaging app, over one million accounts were created. In May 2016, Kik Messenger announced that they had approximately 300 million registered users, and was used by approximately 40% of the teenagers in the United States. Kik Messenger was acquired by Medialab Technology in October 2019.