Comparison

Cipher Message vs NetBuddy ForensicChef

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Cipher Message

Easily encrypt and decrypt messages within your messaging app using various classic ciphers. Protect your conversations with friends and upgrade for advanced encryption methods and Face ID unlock.

Highlights
  • Encrypt/decrypt in iMessage
  • Classic ciphers (Caesar, Vigenère)
  • Advanced ciphers (AES)
  • Face ID unlock
  • Private conversations
Read full description

Cipher Message is an App and iMessage Extension that lets you easily encrypt and decrypt messages right inside the Messages app. Choose from classic ciphers like Caesar and Vigenère, Rail Fence, or Playfair to protect your conversations, or upgrade to Premium to enable AES (password) and add Face ID to lock the message. Simply select your cipher, type your message, set your key, and then encrypted and send to your friends. They can decrypt your message using the same extension, keeping your chats private and fun. Features: - Encrypt and decrypt messages directly in iMessage - Supports Caesar, Vigenère, Rail Fence, and Playfair - Easy-to-use interface - Share encrypted messages with friends - Keep your conversations private Upgrade to Premium to enjoy: - No Ads - Additional Ciphers and Encryption Methods: - AES (set your own password) - Face ID Secondary Encryption (disclaimer: does not use FaceID to encrypt, only requires FaceID of recipient to unlock message)

About

NetBuddy ForensicChef

Features
Read full description

ForensicChef — mobile forensics and data transformation toolkit Quickly import, inspect, transform and export forensic captures and text data on your iPhone or iPad. Build repeatable "recipes" of operations to automate parsing, decoding, filtering and formatting so you can reproduce results reliably and share findings with colleagues. Key features: Import from files or clipboard: accept raw capture files and text (PCAP, base64/hex dumps, CSV, JSON and plain text) via the Share sheet or clipboard. Reusable recipes: chain operations (parse, filter, decode, extract, format) into named recipes that you can save, run and modify. Lightweight operations: common forensic helpers such as hex/base64 decode, timestamp conversion, field extraction, regex search/replace, and CSV/JSON formatting. Secure local exports: export results to local files for secure sharing or archival; temporary-file export ensures reliable access for the system share sheet. Reproducibility: save, export and version recipes so analyses can be repeated and audited. Privacy-first: all processing occurs locally on-device; nothing is uploaded without your explicit action. Who it’s for? Mobile forensics practitioners who need a portable tool for quick parsing and triage. Security analysts and incident responders who want reproducible, shareable transformations of capture or text artifacts. Developers and researchers who need a compact playground for testing parsing and data-extraction logic. Getting started Paste or import a capture/text into the Input. Add operations from the picker and arrange them into a recipe. Run the recipe to produce transformed Output. Export or share results securely when needed. Download ForensicChef to speed up mobile forensic triage, keep analyses reproducible, and share results securely — all from your device.

Screenshots

Cipher Message4 screens
NetBuddy ForensicChef4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Cipher Message at Free against NetBuddy ForensicChef's $1.99. Cipher Message also leads on iOS requirement (18.5 vs 26.0). NetBuddy ForensicChef's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ads (none vs shown). On device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Cipher Message is free to download; NetBuddy ForensicChef costs $1.99 up front. Cipher Message sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. NetBuddy ForensicChef asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard4 real differences · 5 level
Cipher Message versus NetBuddy ForensicChef: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCipher MessageNetBuddy ForensicChef
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightly—
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.5 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size21 MB1 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperNathaniel Van EveraRick Bodnar

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Cipher Message

One-time1
  • Cipher Message Premium$0.99
None

NetBuddy ForensicChef

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Cipher Message free?
Cipher Message is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is NetBuddy ForensicChef free?
NetBuddy ForensicChef costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Cipher Message or NetBuddy ForensicChef have ads?
Cipher Message shows ads; NetBuddy ForensicChef does not.

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