The Sarahah app: What is it and why is it so popular?

A platform to post comments anonymously

August 11, 2017 05:19 pm | Updated 05:21 pm IST

Sarahah app screengrab

Sarahah app screengrab

From secret crushes to horrible bosses, people are always wishing for ways to vent on someone without breaking the status quo in real life. Well, help is here.

The Sarahah anonymous messaging app provides a platform to search for users, express one's feelings much easily and anonymously, and end it there.

It was designed as a self-development app, but with the increasing numbers of cases of cyber-stalking and trolling it remains to be seen if this app, which has been making waves in the last few days in India, is the best thing for iOS and Android users.

Remember Orkut's testimonials? Where a friend can post what they feel about us and we are left feeling good for the rest of the day? We did see this concept used in sayat.me, and maybe a few more websites. But if the feedback is negative, could be from anyone, it could hurt users with anxiety issues. On the plus side, it could open us up to learn about our areas of improvement. Users can block senders if they receive an offensive comment.

Fortune.com reported in July last week that Sarahah had rocketed to the top of the charts, becoming the most popular free download from the U.S. iOS App Store, and the second most popular free app on Google Play.

The app was created by a Saudi programmer, Zain al-Abidin Tawfiq, who said the site had garnered more than 270 million views and 20 million users in just a few weeks, according to bbc.com. Tawfiq said that though he "did not at all" expect the website to become so popular so quickly, he was happy with how things turned out.

The Sarahah app is available in Arabic and English.

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