Threema Work

Threema Work

The Secure WhatsApp Alternative for Companies

The example of WhatsApp illustrates well what risks everyday chat apps entail for companies. As a dedicated business messenger, Threema Work not only ensures secure and GDPR-compliant business communication but also offers considerable benefits compared to regular messengers and collaboration tools. Find out on this page what makes Threema Work the ideal WhatsApp replacement for businesses.

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WhatsApp alternative for companies – Threema Work

The Problem with Everyday Messengers and Collaboration Tools with a Chat Feature

Shadow IT

Using Problematic Chat Apps Because There Is No Alternative Available

Employees often use everyday messengers such as WhatsApp for business communication because they’re already familiar with these apps and there is no corporate alternative available. Using regular chat apps at work, however, could lead to data-protection violations. This is an unnecessary risk: as a result, companies might face high fines, the privacy of employees and external stakeholders is disregarded, and sensitive information and trade secrets could fall into the hands of uninvolved parties.

The use of WhatsApp in companies as a risk of shadow IT
WhatsApp replacement Threema Work for GDPR-compliant messenger communication

High GDPR fines

Loss of protection of trade secrets

Inadequate protection of employees’ privacy

Missing order processing agreement

Data Protection and Security

Unnecessary Security Risks and Insufficient Privacy Protection

Messenger services intended for personal use often process and store user information such as chat behavior or location data in third countries like the US. This does not comply with progressive data-protection laws such as the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): everyday messengers hardly meet the relevant legal requirements for data protection or for the protection of trade secrets.

Apps for Personal Use

Lack of Administrability and Missing Business Features

Chat services developed for personal use also fall short of corporate requirements in terms of configuration options. There’s the risk that professional content circulates unhindered in the private sphere of former employees who haven’t been removed from group chats. Furthermore, there’s no possibility to place functional restrictions on all employees or certain parts of the workforce, and useful business features are missing, e.g., the off-hours policy or a broadcast tool for fast information distribution.

Efficient administrability of the Threema Work app
Threema Work as a complement to MS Teams

For Every Use Case

A Collaboration Tool with Chat Feature Is No Substitute

In 2022 alone, Microsoft Teams had been subject to thousands of cyberattacks, which is proof enough that the collaboration service does not provide sufficient protection of company secrets and personal information. On that account, a secure business messenger is essential, no matter whether it’s used as primary communication solution or as a complementary service to existing collaboration tools.

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Success Stories

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Mercedes-Benz Group AG
“Threema Work is the ideal complement to other collaboration tools that focus on desktop messaging and video conferencing.”
Michael Schrank
EDEKA
“The ways to integrate Threema Work into one’s own systems are brilliant.”
Pierre Vieweg
City of Frankfurt am Main
“Threema Work clearly offers the best bang for your buck.”
Thorsten Berner
TK Elevator
“Our service technicians are huge fans of Threema Work; it’s an essential tool for their work.”
Mustafa Tökmel
Open Circle AG
“Threema Work helps us to act quickly when disruptions occur and simplifies our internal communication.”
Pascal Mages
City of Freiburg im Breisgau
“Threema Work is a privacy-compliant messaging app our employees can use without having to worry.”
Michael Schulz
Mercedes-Benz India
“Threema Work is a reliable and secure messaging app for exchanging confidential information.”
Shivani Sawant
Abiomed
“With Threema Work, the research team can engage in direct dialogue with the center in charge in no time.”
Prof. Dr. Dr. med. Andreas Goetzenich MBA, FAHA, FESC
Swiss Alpine Rescue
“With Threema Work, we’ve achieved a quantum leap in mission communication.”
Theo Maurer
STIWA Group
“In today’s world, a messaging service is not only essential for efficient communication, it’s also demanded by employees.”
Christoph Oppermann
Emmental Hospital
“Thanks to Threema Work, we were able to significantly reduce the organizational workload we had when an employee called in sick. Finding substitutions for sick leaves has never been easier.”
Michael Eicher
Bau- und Liegenschaftsbetrieb NRW
“Having been a long-standing Threema user, opting for Threema Work was a natural thing to do.”
Jürgen Ebbinghaus
AOZ
“Threema Work enables AOZ to communicate in a secure way and exchange information within the organization quickly and easily.”
Valerie Nuzzo
Baden-Württemberg Association of German Cities and Towns
“Threema Work enables excellent coordination of events behind the scenes.”
Timo Jung
City of Winterthur
“Distributing the app via our own MDM system happens to be very efficient.”
Markus Wassmer
Digital Solutions, Department of Justice and Home Affairs of the Canton of Zurich
“We have introduced Threema Work to provide our employees with a secure business messaging solution featuring a centrally managed address book they can use on their personal device independently of a phone number.”
Urs Kaderli
Hotel Estrel Berlin
“Threema Work is user-friendly and ingeniously easy to use – anyone can work with it!”
Katharina Katschorowski
Children’s Hospital Dritter Orden Passau, Dritter Orden Clinic GmbH
“Threema Work allows to combine mobile working and data protection in the best possible way.”
Alexander Traub
Hospital STS AG – Rescue Service
“Instant messaging is a contemporary means of communication, and our employees enjoy using Threema Work.”
Marc Stiller
Alliance 90 / The Greens
“Privacy protection and data restraint are not just political demands to us – with Threema, we can live up to these claims.”
Michael Kellner
Road Traffic Office of the Canton of Zurich
“Threema Work provides us with a secure mobile communication solution for situations where things have to be done quickly.”
Luca Häberlin
Tanne, Swiss Foundation for Persons with Deafblindness
“We opted for Threema Work because it prioritizes privacy protection – just like we do at Tanne.”
Sandra Fässler
Saxony State Forestry Service
“After having reviewed alternatives to WhatsApp and Telegram, we decided to use Threema Work for business purposes.”
Gerald Seiger
PESCO Switzerland AG
“Our employees are fully satisfied with Threema OnPrem because of its usability and the security it provides.”
Dorus Everwijn
Betnation
“Threema Work has become an essential tool within our organization for everyday communication.”
Gabriël Benedito
Heinrich Manten Qualitätsfleisch vom Niederrhein GmbH & Co. KG
“With Threema Work, we have a tool at hand that allows us to improve the efficiency and responsiveness in communication.”
Christoph Bartels
All Service Sicherheitsdienste GmbH
“Due to its high security standards and GDPR compliance, there is currently no alternative to Threema Work for us.”
Christian Jäkel
Arnold-Janssen-Gymnasium
“It has become much easier for us to reach our students.”
Arnold-Janssen-GymnasiumHarald Lohmann
Hardtschule Durmersheim
“Threema has become indispensable to us.”
Hardtschule DurmersheimVolker Arntz

The Solution:
The Secure Business Messenger Threema Work as an Alternative to WhatsApp

Instead of an all-rounder with an overwhelming number of features, settings, and options, Threema Work is a suitable replacement for WhatsApp in companies that focuses on the essentials: it offers all features employees expect from a modern instant messenger and guarantees a high level of security for your business communication.

What are the advantages of the WhatsApp alternative Threema Work?

Effective Protection
of Sensitive and Confidential Content

When exchanging sensitive business information, airtight security that prevents any third-party access is a must. Threema Work is the perfect communication channel for industries that require superlative security and unparalleled data protection.

The business messenger is 100% GDPR-compliant, known for its rigorous metadata restraint, and it can be used without providing any personal information (such as a phone number or email address) whatsoever.

More about Threema Work’s security
Law firms, courts, etc.

Law firms, courts, etc.

C-level and top management

C-level and top management

Hospitals, nursing staff, clinics

Hospitals, nursing staff, clinics

Police forces, armies, security organizations, etc.

Police forces, armies, security organizations, etc.

Research and development

Research and development

Public authorities, municipalities, political organizations, etc.

Public authorities, municipalities, political organizations, etc.

and many more

and many more

Integrate Your Mobile Workforce
in a Secure Manner

With Threema Work, companies reach all employees, even those who don’t have a permanent workspace or a corporate email address. Thanks to the intuitive chat app, the whole communication is easy and straightforward. Team communication in group chats and broadcast messaging via Threema Broadcast increase both productivity and the collaboration among the staff members. Furthermore, challenges that come with Bring Your Own Device are met, and full GDPR compliance is ensured.

The Bring Your Own Device challenge

Efficient Administration
and User Management

In the management cockpit, you define the ways in which your employees can use the Threema Work app. The professional administration tool allows admins to efficiently manage credentials and remotely define app settings. For example, certain features can be restricted for specific departments, and the setup process for employees is facilitated.

Threema Work dashboard

Avoid Shadow IT:
Ban WhatsApp

Chat apps have become an integral part of everyday work life. Threema Work is a powerful WhatsApp alternative that allows your employees to make use of the wide range of instant messaging’s benefits while avoiding a dangerous shadow IT and maintaining full security and data protection. On decision-making levels, security requirements are particularly high to ensure that sensitive information and company secrets don’t fall into the hands of uninvolved parties while business negotiations are still in progress.

Secure C-level communication The risks of shadow IT
Threema OnPrem

Threema OnPrem

Self-hosted enterprise messaging
Learn more Threema OnPrem Self-hosted enterprise messaging

Secure and Time-Tested

More about security
100% GDPR-compliant

100% GDPR-compliant

Consistent end-to-end encryption

Consistent end-to-end encryption

Regular audits

Regular audits

Metadata restraint as a guiding principle

Metadata restraint as a guiding principle


Conclusion:
Why Companies Should Refrain From Using WhatsApp

Many employees use the instant messenger WhatsApp for business purposes because they are already familiar with it from the private sphere. However, WhatsApp does not meet the requirements for business communication, using it can result in dangerous shadow IT, and disregarding the GDPR may lead to steep fines. That’s why companies should switch to a secure and GDPR-compliant business messenger like Threema Work.

Threema Work continues to be at the forefront of secure messaging in 2024. In contrast to WhatsApp, the business messenger focuses on metadata restraint and can be used without providing personal data. Communication in Threema Work is 100% GDPR-compliant and fully end-to-end encrypted. No confidential business data is stored on the Threema servers. For companies with particularly high security requirements, there’s the option to host Threema Work on their own servers. In contrast to WhatsApp, Threema Work offers multiple configuration options to manage users, and it provides important business features such as a broadcast tool for fast information distribution.

Threema Work licenses for professional use are available from CHF 1.50 per month (annual payment). NGOs, schools, and other educational institutions benefit from preferential terms. Details about the price plans (Essential, Advanced, and Professional) can be found on this page.

To get acquainted with Threema Work, make sure to activate a free trial, and test Threema Work without restrictions and without any purchase obligation.

Yes, Threema Work is the ideal complement to Microsoft Teams. Collaboration platforms like MS Teams don’t provide a secure communication channel (the integrated chat function doesn’t offer end-to-end encryption), which is why the chat app Threema Work is the right tool to exchange business information worthy of protection. Depending on the needs, the dedicated business messenger can be used as a primary communication channel, in addition to an existing tool (e.g., MS Teams), or for emergency situations (business continuity).

Find out on this page why Microsoft Teams is no alternative to a secure messaging app.