Keeping your chats secure is a good idea, but end-to-end encryption is just the beginning of the list of options to consider when picking a messaging app.
You can easily redirect xmpp to port 443 which is not blocked by most firewalls. If you have problems with firewalls or public wifis your xmpp server is misconfigured.
China will definitely block xmpp on any port. I know this because I have tested this very specifically from my own server. It lasted about a day and a dozen messages before it was blocked, and the box got absolutely slammed with vulnerability scans.
I can almost guarantee you they are using it through a VPN or they have a western SIM card. If not I’d love to know what server they use, as I’ve tested this a bunch of times on several public and private servers and it’s always the same result. If it isn’t blocked on day 1 it will be blocked quickly.
You can easily redirect xmpp to port 443 which is not blocked by most firewalls. If you have problems with firewalls or public wifis your xmpp server is misconfigured.
China will definitely block xmpp on any port. I know this because I have tested this very specifically from my own server. It lasted about a day and a dozen messages before it was blocked, and the box got absolutely slammed with vulnerability scans.
This is odd because I know a few mainland Chinese people that use XMPP without problems (and afaik without a VPN).
Sounds like your server got blocked for another reason?
I can almost guarantee you they are using it through a VPN or they have a western SIM card. If not I’d love to know what server they use, as I’ve tested this a bunch of times on several public and private servers and it’s always the same result. If it isn’t blocked on day 1 it will be blocked quickly.