Unverified50% confidenceOpinionExact time
In the late 1990s, internet products generally prioritized feature iteration over security, and ICQ's vulnerabilities were merely a microcosm of the instant messaging security predicament of that time.
1
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50%
Confidence
Long-term
Relevance
10/16/2026
First Seen
Sources
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Related Claims
UnverifiedIn the late 1990s, encryption tools such as PGP began to be introduced into instant messaging scenarios by some technical users, and third-party plugins and alternative solutions began to attract attention, but ICQ itself did not natively support end-to-end encryption.76% similarUnverifiedIn 1998, the instant messaging software ICQ had a major security vulnerability labeled "Major ICQ security hole," whose core problem was serious flaws in how the client handled user authentication and message transmission.74% similar
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