How to find out the content of traffic using a sniffer?

Question

Encryption

Good afternoon. Tell me, is it possible to decrypt traffic and find out its contents using a sniffer like Wireshark or another? After all, that's what they're meant for. There is such a messenger - Vipole. The developers claim that all data in it is securely encrypted over the network. I want to know if this is true or if it's all a sham. After all, you can claim anything.

Answer 1

Sniffers are not designed to decrypt traffic.
Advanced sniffers will help you parse any known open protocol (HTTP, SMTP, ...). It is not a fact that the sniffer understands the exchange protocol of your particular messenger.
The sniffer cannot do anything with the encrypted protocol.
The maximum is to write the traffic to a file, and then you decrypt it with something else.
By intercepting messenger traffic, you can see in clear text whether the message text is being transmitted.
The same can be done by analyzing the source code of the messenger, if it is available.
PS: In general, it is useless to decrypt modern cryptography without knowing the keys - it will take more than one hundred or thousand years. That's why cryptography was invented.