[Dysiode]

I'm not sure how this is necessarily much different than phone communication with the notable caveat that text is quicker to parse. It's already inadvisable to give that information over the phone as a landline can be tapped and there's plenty of proof of concepts of tapping wireless networks.

At least with an app you have the option of adding in security layers. SSL for one, Simple uses a PIN on their app, Art.com will process a transaction in chat but direct you to their website to submit payment information, and on top of all this you have the added benefit of easily documented interaction. -You- can reference your own interaction without the near impossibility of having a call recording audited (as a call center CSR and supervisor I've seen this happen no more than six times).

In fact, in one interaction with Art.com I sent an email to an agent with photos of some damage to the piece they shipped me in my initial email which resulted in a resolution in the response.

Another case with GIGABYTE I was able to send photographic description of my issue due to a consistent (likely language barrier related) misunderstanding about what was meant by "a missing pin." which immediately clarified the conversation and we were able to move forward.

tl;dr the variety of "offline" security measures available and the convenience gained with "offline" support makes that minefield significantly less dangerous in my experience, especially considering the dangers already present in phone based support.