Private messaging over internet related services is difficult to implement. Regular end-to-end encryption messaging systems are prone to man in the middle attacks and only hide messages but not the identity of its users. For example, WhatsApp offers a strong privacy guarantee but does not hide much Metadata because it uses end-to-end encryption. Other messaging systems such as Skype can be monitored by government agencies and have backdoors implemented into its software. Zephyr is an anonymous messaging system that protects the privacy of message contents and message metadata. Users that use Zephyr do not reveal who they are talking to or the contents of their messages. The goal of Zephyr is to decrease the amount of information being sent by the user and hide as much metadata as possible.

翻译：通过互联网相关服务的私人信息传输很难实施。常规端对端加密信息传输系统在中场攻击中容易为人所使用,只能隐藏信息,但不能隐藏用户身份。例如,“WhessApp”提供了强有力的隐私保障,但并不因为使用端对端加密而隐藏大量元数据。Skype等其他信息传递系统可以由政府机构监控,并将后门安装到软件中。Zephyr是一个匿名信息传递系统,保护信息内容和信息元数据的隐私。使用Zephyr的用户不会透露他们与谁交谈或他们信息内容。Zephyr的目标是减少用户发送的信息数量,并尽可能隐藏元数据。