<s>
Google	B-Protocol
Allo	I-Protocol
was	O
an	O
instant	B-Application
messaging	I-Application
mobile	B-Application
app	I-Application
by	O
Google	B-Application
for	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
iOS	B-Application
mobile	B-Operating_System
operating	I-Operating_System
systems	I-Operating_System
,	O
with	O
a	O
web	O
client	O
available	O
on	O
Google	B-Application
Chrome	I-Application
,	O
Mozilla	B-Application
Firefox	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Opera	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
app	O
used	O
phone	O
numbers	O
as	O
identifiers	O
,	O
allowing	O
users	O
to	O
exchange	O
messages	B-Protocol
,	O
files	O
,	O
voice	O
notes	O
,	O
and	O
images	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
included	O
a	O
virtual	B-Protocol
assistant	I-Protocol
that	O
generated	O
automatic	O
reply	O
suggestions	O
and	O
an	O
optional	O
encrypted	O
mode	O
known	O
as	O
incognito	O
mode	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
could	O
also	O
resize	O
messages	B-Protocol
and	O
add	O
doodles	O
and	O
stickers	O
on	O
images	O
before	O
sending	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Before	O
launch	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
touted	O
strong	O
privacy	O
in	O
the	O
app	O
,	O
with	O
particular	O
emphasis	O
on	O
messages	B-Protocol
stored	O
"	O
transiently	O
and	O
in	O
non-identifiable	O
form	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
at	O
launch	O
,	O
privacy	O
was	O
significantly	O
rolled	O
back	O
,	O
with	O
Google	B-Application
keeping	O
logs	O
of	O
messages	B-Protocol
indefinitely	O
(	O
or	O
until	O
the	O
user	O
deletes	O
messages	B-Protocol
)	O
in	O
an	O
effort	O
to	O
improve	O
the	O
app	O
's	O
"	O
smart	O
reply	O
"	O
feature	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Allo	B-Protocol
was	O
announced	O
at	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
developer	B-Application
conference	I-Application
on	O
May	O
18	O
,	O
2016	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
the	O
time	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
said	O
that	O
it	O
would	O
release	O
Allo	B-Protocol
in	O
summer	O
2016	O
,	O
and	O
they	O
launched	O
it	O
on	O
September	O
21	O
,	O
2016	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
the	O
unveiling	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
Pixel	O
smartphone	O
in	O
October	O
2016	O
,	O
it	O
announced	O
that	O
Allo	B-Protocol
would	O
be	O
pre-installed	O
on	O
the	O
Pixel	O
phones	O
,	O
along	O
with	O
its	O
sister	O
app	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
Duo	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2017	O
,	O
a	O
tweet	B-Application
by	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
Vice	O
President	O
of	O
Communications	O
Nick	O
Fox	O
showed	O
a	O
screenshot	O
of	O
Allo	B-Protocol
running	O
as	O
a	O
web	B-Application
app	I-Application
,	O
along	O
with	O
the	O
words	O
:	O
"	O
Still	O
in	O
early	O
development	O
,	O
but	O
coming	O
to	O
a	O
desktop	O
near	O
you	O
...	O
"	O
A	O
further	O
tweet	B-Application
from	O
Fox	O
in	O
May	O
stated	O
that	O
the	O
web	O
client	O
was	O
"	O
a	O
month	O
or	O
two	O
from	O
public	O
release.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
,	O
Google	B-Protocol
Allo	I-Protocol
for	O
web	O
went	O
live	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
users	O
using	O
Google	B-Application
Chrome	I-Application
,	O
while	O
Firefox	B-Application
,	O
Opera	B-Application
and	O
iOS	B-Application
support	O
was	O
rolled	O
out	O
in	O
October	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
April	O
2018	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
reported	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
would	O
be	O
"	O
pausing	O
"	O
development	O
of	O
Allo	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Anil	O
Sabharwal	O
,	O
the	O
new	O
head	O
of	O
the	O
communications	O
group	O
at	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
stated	O
that	O
its	O
employees	O
would	O
work	O
primarily	O
on	O
its	O
implementation	O
of	O
the	O
carrier-based	O
Rich	O
Communication	O
Services	O
(	O
RCS	O
)	O
Universal	O
Profile	O
,	O
under	O
the	O
branding	O
"	O
Chat	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
was	O
implemented	O
within	O
the	O
Android	B-Protocol
Messages	I-Protocol
app	O
used	O
for	O
SMS	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2018	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
they	O
would	O
end	O
support	O
for	O
Allo	B-Protocol
in	O
March	O
2019	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
final	O
update	O
to	O
the	O
app	O
allowed	O
users	O
to	O
export	O
chat	O
messages	B-Protocol
from	O
Allo	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Allo	B-Protocol
service	O
shut	O
down	O
completely	O
on	O
March	O
14	O
,	O
2019	O
,	O
with	O
its	O
homepage	O
recommending	O
users	O
to	O
try	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
Messages	B-Protocol
app	O
as	O
an	O
alternative	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Allo	B-Protocol
was	O
based	O
on	O
phone	O
numbers	O
,	O
not	O
by	O
social	O
media	O
or	O
email	O
accounts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Allo	B-Protocol
's	O
"	O
Smart	O
reply	O
"	O
feature	O
used	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
machine	O
learning	O
technology	O
to	O
suggest	O
a	O
reply	O
to	O
the	O
last	O
message	O
,	O
which	O
could	O
be	O
selected	O
from	O
a	O
few	O
options	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Similar	O
to	O
the	O
smart	O
reply	O
feature	O
seen	O
in	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
Inbox	B-Protocol
app	O
,	O
it	O
learnt	O
from	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
behavior	O
to	O
adapt	O
its	O
suggestions	O
over	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Allo	B-Protocol
was	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
apps	O
that	O
supported	O
Google	B-Application
Assistant	I-Application
,	O
a	O
virtual	B-Protocol
assistant	I-Protocol
that	O
allows	O
users	O
to	O
ask	O
questions	O
and	O
receive	O
answers	O
in	O
a	O
two-way	O
conversational	O
nature	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
November	O
2016	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
introduced	O
Smart	O
Smiley	O
,	O
a	O
feature	O
that	O
suggested	O
emojis	O
and	O
stickers	O
depending	O
on	O
the	O
mood	O
of	O
the	O
message	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2017	O
,	O
a	O
GIF	O
library	O
was	O
added	O
in	O
the	O
compose	O
bar	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
easier	O
one-tap	O
access	O
to	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Assistant	O
,	O
and	O
animated	O
emoji	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
in	O
March	O
was	O
an	O
update	O
that	O
let	O
Android	B-Application
users	O
send	O
various	O
types	O
of	O
files	O
,	O
including	O
PDFs	B-Application
,	O
documents	O
,	O
APKs	B-Application
,	O
ZIP	B-General_Concept
archives	I-General_Concept
,	O
and	O
MP3	B-Application
tracks	I-Application
through	O
Allo	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Later	O
the	O
same	O
month	O
,	O
Fast	O
Company	O
reported	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
updated	O
Allo	B-Protocol
to	O
add	O
cartoon	O
stickers	O
on	O
selfie	O
photos	O
,	O
powered	O
by	O
artificial	B-Application
intelligence	I-Application
technology	O
capable	O
of	O
producing	O
"	O
563	O
quadrillion	O
face	O
"	O
animations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Complementing	O
selfie	O
stickers	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
also	O
launched	O
"	O
selfie	O
clips	O
"	O
,	O
short	O
looped	O
videos	O
of	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
face	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
,	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
make	O
Google	B-Application
Duo	I-Application
video	O
or	O
audio	O
calls	O
directly	O
from	O
Allo	B-Protocol
chats	O
was	O
included	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
following	O
month	O
saw	O
message	O
reactions	O
being	O
added	O
,	O
where	O
users	O
could	O
tap	O
on	O
a	O
heart	O
below	O
messages	B-Protocol
received	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
version	O
25	O
,	O
automatic	O
transcriptions	O
for	O
audio	O
messages	B-Protocol
appeared	O
,	O
though	O
this	O
could	O
be	O
disabled	O
in	O
settings	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
encryption	O
,	O
the	O
app	O
used	O
the	O
Signal	B-Protocol
Protocol	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Incognito	O
mode	O
did	O
not	O
include	O
any	O
Smart	O
Reply	O
or	O
Google	B-Application
Assistant	I-Application
features	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
the	O
user	O
received	O
a	O
sticker	O
from	O
a	O
sticker	O
pack	O
that	O
they	O
did	O
not	O
already	O
have	O
installed	O
on	O
their	O
device	O
,	O
the	O
app	O
retrieved	O
the	O
sticker	O
from	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
servers	O
using	O
security	O
,	O
but	O
not	O
end-to-end	O
encryption	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
PC	O
Worlds	O
Mark	O
Hachman	O
gave	O
a	O
favorable	O
review	O
of	O
Allo	B-Protocol
's	O
virtual	B-Protocol
assistant	I-Protocol
,	O
saying	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
a	O
"	O
step	O
up	O
on	O
Cortana	B-Application
and	O
Siri	B-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
Allo	B-Protocol
's	O
introduction	O
at	O
Google	B-Application
I/O	I-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
was	O
criticized	O
by	O
security	O
experts	O
and	O
privacy	O
advocates	O
for	O
having	O
the	O
end-to-end	O
encryption	O
turned	O
off	O
by	O
default	O
,	O
which	O
they	O
argue	O
leaves	O
the	O
app	O
open	O
to	O
government	O
surveillance	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Edward	O
Snowden	O
,	O
whistleblower	O
and	O
former	O
NSA	O
contractor	O
,	O
criticized	O
the	O
app	O
on	O
Twitter	B-Application
,	O
saying	O
that	O
"	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
decision	O
to	O
disable	O
end-to-end	O
encryption	O
by	O
default	O
in	O
its	O
new	O
#Allo	O
chat	O
app	O
is	O
dangerous	O
,	O
and	O
makes	O
it	O
unsafe.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Thai	O
Duong	O
,	O
a	O
co-lead	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
product	O
security	O
team	O
,	O
wrote	O
in	O
a	O
personal	O
blog	O
post	O
that	O
he	O
would	O
push	O
for	O
the	O
addition	O
of	O
a	O
setting	O
that	O
would	O
let	O
users	O
have	O
the	O
encryption	O
on	O
all	O
the	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
Allo	B-Protocol
was	O
first	O
introduced	O
,	O
its	O
developers	O
talked	O
about	O
storing	O
non-incognito	O
messages	B-Protocol
only	O
"	O
transiently	O
and	O
in	O
non-identifiable	O
form	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
launch	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
revealed	O
that	O
they	O
would	O
instead	O
store	O
all	O
non-incognito	O
messages	B-Protocol
indefinitely	O
(	O
or	O
until	O
the	O
user	O
deleted	O
them	O
)	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
improve	O
the	O
built-in	O
"	O
smart	O
reply	O
"	O
feature	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Russell	O
Brandom	O
of	O
The	O
Verge	O
commented	O
that	O
"	O
the	O
decision	O
will	O
have	O
significant	O
consequences	O
for	O
law	O
enforcement	O
access	O
to	O
Allo	B-Protocol
messages	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
default	O
,	O
Allo	B-Protocol
messages	B-Protocol
will	O
now	O
be	O
accessible	O
to	O
lawful	O
warrant	O
requests	O
,	O
the	O
same	O
as	O
message	O
data	O
in	O
Gmail	B-Application
and	O
Hangouts	B-Protocol
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reports	O
surfaced	O
in	O
March	O
2017	O
that	O
a	O
bug	O
with	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Assistant	O
in	O
the	O
Allo	B-Protocol
app	I-Protocol
would	O
accidentally	O
share	O
results	O
in	O
a	O
conversation	O
from	O
an	O
individual	O
's	O
search	O
history	O
,	O
despite	O
the	O
search	O
not	O
being	O
previously	O
mentioned	O
by	O
the	O
other	O
chat	O
participant	O
or	O
previously	O
in	O
the	O
conversation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
acknowledged	O
the	O
issue	O
,	O
and	O
stated	O
that	O
it	O
had	O
been	O
fixed	O
.	O
</s>
