> This is only true now that Element have introduced this compromised way to access signal.
It's never not been true since Signal is just a protocol which you can use programatically. It's certainly not been true at least since signald became a thing. And Element is not the first one to come out with such an offering (see e.g. Beeper).
That makes as much sense as saying nuclear war was as likely before the Manhattan project as afterwards.
It was always possible to build nuclear bombs. It was just ‘better known’ after they were dropped on Japan.
And in this case “better known” is what is being criticized. It’s one thing for someone who understands how to do so to build their own proxy and take their own risks.
It’s another thing entirely to make a consumer product that does this and normalize the practice.
It's never not been true since Signal is just a protocol which you can use programatically. It's certainly not been true at least since signald became a thing. And Element is not the first one to come out with such an offering (see e.g. Beeper).
It's just better known now.