AndroidIRCX E2E Encryption: Private IRC Chat for Android, mIRC and ZNC
AndroidIRCX is expanding end-to-end encrypted IRC with e2e.dll for mIRC and the beta znce2e module for ZNC, helping trusted users read encrypted chats from the clients they already love.
AndroidIRCX E2E Encryption: Private IRC Chat for Android, mIRC and ZNC
IRC has been alive since 1988. That alone says a lot.
Protocols do not survive that long by accident. They survive because real communities keep using them, improving them, and refusing to let good communication disappear just because the internet keeps chasing the next closed platform.
At IRC DBase and AndroidIRCX, we believe IRC still deserves a future. But that future needs stronger privacy, better mobile clients, and tools that let old-school IRC users keep using the applications they already trust.
That is why AndroidIRCX is pushing end-to-end encrypted IRC forward.
AndroidIRCX already provides E2E encrypted chat. Now we are extending that ecosystem with two important tools:
The goal is simple: AndroidIRCX users should be able to talk privately with trusted users who are not on AndroidIRCX yet.
If your friend lives in mIRC, they should still be able to understand your encrypted messages. If your community uses ZNC, users should be able to keep encrypted communication flowing through their favorite IRC setup.
This is not about replacing IRC. This is about keeping IRC alive, private and useful.
🔐 What AndroidIRCX E2E Means
End-to-end encryption means that the message is encrypted before it travels through the IRC network.
The IRC server can still route the message, but it should not be able to read the plaintext. Other users in the channel who do not have the correct key will only see encrypted payloads.
That matters because IRC was created in a very different internet age. Classic IRC is open, fast and simple, but privacy was never its strongest point. TLS protects the connection between you and the server, but it does not automatically protect the content from the server itself.
AndroidIRCX adds another layer:
- 🔐 encrypted private messages
- 🔑 key exchange between trusted users
- 🧩 encrypted channel messages
- 📱 mobile-first encrypted IRC
- 🌍 compatibility work for other IRC clients
The important part is trust. These tools are for people you trust and intentionally share keys with.
🪟 e2e.dll: Bringing AndroidIRCX Encryption to mIRC
e2e.dll is an open-source mIRC DLL and script package for end-to-end encrypted IRC messaging.
For many Windows users, mIRC is still the classic IRC client. It has decades of history, scripts, aliases and users who do not want to leave it. Instead of telling those users to abandon their favorite client, AndroidIRCX is building a bridge.
With e2e.dll, mIRC users can exchange encrypted messages using the same AndroidIRCX-compatible protocol.
The project supports:
- 🔑 DM key sharing and requesting
- ✅ accepting or rejecting encrypted key offers
- 💬 encrypted private messages
- 🧩 encrypted channel messages
- 🔒 optional auto-encrypt for DMs and channels
- 🖱️ right-click mIRC menus for E2E actions
- 💾 optional encrypted key persistence
- 🧪 diagnostic logs for troubleshooting
The quick command is simple:
/e2e This message will be encrypted
If no key exists, the message is not sent as plaintext. That fail-safe behavior matters. Encryption tools should not silently fall back to unsafe behavior when something is missing.
🧬 Strong Cryptography, Not Home-Made Crypto
e2e.dll is built around modern cryptographic primitives through libsodium.
The current protocol uses:
- ✍️ Ed25519 for identity/signatures
- 🔁 X25519 Diffie-Hellman for key exchange
- 🔐 XChaCha20-Poly1305 for authenticated encryption
- 🧾 URL-safe Base64 without padding for IRC/JSON-friendly payloads
- 💾 optional key storage using Windows DPAPI or password-encrypted storage
That is the right direction. IRC encryption should not depend on weak legacy ciphers or improvised crypto. If we want IRC to remain useful in 2026, private messaging needs serious primitives and clear security boundaries.
🔁 znce2e: AndroidIRCX E2E for ZNC Users
znce2e is a ZNC network module for AndroidIRCX/mIRC-compatible end-to-end encryption.
This module is currently in beta / experimental phase, but it is already an important part of the bigger plan.
ZNC is one of the most popular ways to stay connected to IRC. It works as a bouncer: your ZNC stays online, your IRC client connects to ZNC, and you can disconnect/reconnect without losing your IRC presence.
That is powerful, but it also creates a challenge for encryption. If people use ZNC every day, encrypted IRC needs to work with ZNC too.
znce2e brings the same AndroidIRCX/mIRC-compatible protocol into ZNC.
It supports:
- 🔌 ZNC network module named
znce2e - 🔑 DM key exchange
- 💬 encrypted private messages
- 🧩 channel key generation and sharing
- 🔐 encrypted channel messages
- ⚙️ optional auto-encrypt for normal outgoing DMs/channels
- 🛑 fail-secure behavior when a key is missing
- 🧪 Linux/WSL tests and smoke-test tooling
- 🧬 libsodium-based crypto core
Example commands:
/msg *status loadmod znce2e
/msg *znce2e help
/msg *znce2e selftest
Encrypted DM:
/msg *znce2e sharekey Nick
/msg *znce2e encmsg Nick This private message is encrypted
Encrypted channel message:
/msg *znce2e chan generate #secret
/msg *znce2e chan send #secret This channel message is encrypted
This is exactly the kind of tooling IRC needs: not one locked application, but a protocol and modules that let trusted users communicate privately from different clients.
⚠️ Important Security Note About ZNC
End-to-end encryption is only as strong as the trust model around it.
With znce2e, ZNC is inside the trust boundary. That means the module can decrypt messages inside the ZNC process and stores keys in ZNC module state.
So if your ZNC host is compromised, or if the ZNC admin is not trusted, plaintext and keys may be exposed.
Use TLS between your IRC client and ZNC. If your client-to-ZNC connection is not encrypted, plaintext may cross that local link after the module decrypts it.
In short:
- ✅ E2E protects the message across the IRC network
- ✅ ZNC integration makes encrypted IRC usable with bouncers
- ⚠️ Your ZNC host must be trusted
- ⚠️ Use TLS between your IRC client and ZNC
- ⚠️ This module is still experimental/beta
That honesty matters. Security tools should explain the threat model clearly.
👥 Why This Matters for IRC Communities
The best thing about IRC is that it is not one company, one app or one login system.
IRC is networks, servers, channels, bots, bouncers, scripts, clients and people. That is why it survived this long.
But if IRC wants to stay alive for another decade, it needs to respect what users expect today:
- 🔒 private communication
- 📱 good mobile support
- 🌐 web access
- 🧩 compatibility between clients
- 🛠️ open tools
- 👥 community-first development
AndroidIRCX is not only building an Android app. It is building tools around IRC so users can keep talking from the clients they already love.
That is why e2e.dll matters for mIRC users.
That is why znce2e matters for ZNC users.
And that is why more modules are coming.
🚧 What Comes Next
The current focus is AndroidIRCX, mIRC and ZNC.
But the plan is bigger:
- 🧩 more modules for other IRC clients
- 🔁 better interoperability testing
- 🔐 stronger key handling
- 🧬 improved protocol documentation
- 📱 better encrypted mobile workflows
- 🌍 more ways for trusted users to read encrypted AndroidIRCX chats from their favorite applications
The idea is not to force everyone into one app.
The idea is to let trusted users participate in encrypted IRC from the tools they already use.
❤️ IRC Is Still Worth Building For
IRC has been alive since 1988.
That is older than many platforms that came, grew, got sold, got closed, or simply disappeared.
IRC survived because communities kept showing up. People ran servers. Developers wrote clients. Admins kept networks stable. Users kept channels alive. Scripts, bots and bouncers became part of the culture.
IRC DBase is continuing that work.
We are constantly working to improve user security and privacy on the internet, while keeping IRC communication alive. Not as a museum piece, but as a living protocol that still has a place in 2026.
AndroidIRCX E2E encryption, e2e.dll, and znce2e are part of that mission.
IRC does not die when communities keep building.
See you on IRC.
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