Over the past two weeks, the number of Americans who have downloaded Signal, an encrypted messaging application, has skyrocketed. Many are using the app to organize and participate in protests agai… ...

Downloads of privacy-focused messaging apps Signal and Telegram got a boost as users looked for alternatives to Facebook-owned WhatsApp over concerns about changes to the service's privacy policy ...

Signal qualifies. Services that monitor app downloads, like App Anie and Apptopia, noticed an increase in Signal downloads. This past weekend, the app was installed 37,000 times, Mashable reports.

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.

Signal now has over 102 million installs globally across the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. 61.4 million downloads of Signal have happened in 2021 alone.

On Jan. 4, Signal ranked No. 750 in overall U.S. downloads, according to App Annie. The number continued to jump until the app reached No. 1 in overall U.S. downloads on Sunday.