The NW Publisher app is an iOS and Android app that allows publishers to electronically view information created in New World Scheduler by their local congregation elders.
Data for NW Publisher app comes directly from your local congregation only. Your local congregation must first use New World Scheduler (Desktop Edition) to generate and send any data to the app.
The NW Publisher app does NOT store confidential information online. NW Publisher is fully compliant with sfl and fully compliant with European Union (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
NW Publisher app is used by hundreds of thousands of Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide, including elders, pioneers, missionaries, and Bethelites.
Does the Branch 'approve' of NW Publisher app?
New World Scheduler and NW Publisher app are not official apps or programs created by the Watchtower Society. Therefore, New World Scheduler and NW Publisher app are obviously not “endorsed by”, “recommended” or “officially approved” by the organisation.
This makes sense. The organisation does not and will not create a list of books, songs, movies, websites, programs or apps we can or cant use. (see w14 7/15 14)
The branch is fully aware of New World Scheduler and NW Publisher app and has no objections to its use. World Headquarters (WHQ) has been in contact with us several times.
New World Scheduler and our NW Publisher app are both used by hundreds of thousands of Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide every single day! This includes elders, pioneers, missionaries, Bethelites and even Branch Committee members.
Please feel free to read the comments of many spiritually mature elders around the world, including in your local area.
NW Publisher app Security and Privacy
New World Scheduler takes data security and data protection very seriously and ensures your congregation data is fully secure at all times. We fear Jehovah and would never do anything to misuse or endanger your data.
“Prove yourselves cautious as serpents and yet innocent as doves.” – Matthew 10:16
NW Publisher app has been designed so that your congregation information can only be accessed by approved persons in your congregation.
This is no way anyone else can ever see or edit your congregation data, including New World Scheduler support personnel or programmers.
Authorization
NW Publisher app uses OAuth 2.0 authorization, including Access Tokens and Refresh Tokens, to provide secure credentials to approved persons in your congregation. This means only authenticated persons with the correct credentials can access your encrypted data strings.
Secure credentials only allow access to your congregation, meaning authenticated users cannot even access another congregations encrypted data strings.
Authentication
NW Publisher app uses a variety of data to authenticate. We have tried hard to balance ease of use and security.
To authenticate, publishers must know the following:
- Congregation ID
- Congregation PIN
- Their First Name
- Their Person PIN
NW Publisher app Administrators can change the Congregation PIN and Person PINs as required.
Security Best Practise
NW Publisher app implements the following best-practise security processes:
- New World Scheduler uses both data obfuscation and data encryption to ensure any transferred data strings are meaningless unless viewed inside New World Scheduler or NW Publisher app.
- New World Scheduler uses end-to-end encryption, which means the data is fully encrypted before it is transferred to and from NW Publisher app and cannot be opened by anyone outside your congregation.
- Encryption keys are not stored online or on any server. Encryption keys are saved on your local device only.
- New World Scheduler uses 128-bit Encryption Keys generated on your local device using the Congregation PIN and Person PIN. This means your local data is converted to randomised and meaningless strings before ever leaving the device.
- New World Scheduler developers or support personnel do not and can not view or edit your encryption keys or data. It is therefore technically impossible for them to decrypt, view, see or edit your data under any circumstances.
- Data transfer uses HTTPS connections, so it is additionally encrypted on the transport layer (known as TLS).
- The only “data” that ever leaves your device is randomised and meaningless strings.
- Each congregation is automatically assigned a unique and obfuscated storage location to transfer the encrypted data strings. Access to this location is restricted to approved persons in your congregation who must first authenticate.
- If you Disable NW Publisher app, the meaningless encrypted strings are immediately and permanently removed from the app server.
Data Encrption
Our encryption algorithm is Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) with a password-based key derived by SHA-2.
Encryption key length is 256-bit. Derivation Iterations is 200000.
Data Transfer Security
Data is transferred using TLS 1.2.
Both TLS 1.0 and TLS 1.1 are disabled.
Server Security
How does the NW Publisher app work?
- Step 1: An elder opens New World Scheduler and enables the NW Publisher app.
- Step 2: An appointed brother uses New World Scheduler to create the Christian Life and Ministry, Public Talk, Duties or cleaning schedule.
- Step 3: That brother uses New World Scheduler to send the data to the app.
- Step 4: A publisher downloads the NW Publisher app from the Apple Store or Google Play Store.
- Step 5: Using information his elders gave him, he opens the App, logs into the congregation and identifies himself.
- Step 6: His device will now receive any assignments, duties, congregation events and announcements from his local congregation.
Does NW Publisher app share data using Email?
No, NW Publisher app does not use Email or a Mail Server to share or transfer data.
We recommend brothers be very cautious about using any program or application that recommends sharing congregation information via email.
Using Email or a Mail Server to transfer data is extremely insecure and unsafe. In fact, it is one of the least secure methods possible. It is extremely irresponsible to share congregation data via email.
We strongly recommend against using Email or a Mail Server to share data files, for at least the following reasons:
- Email and a Mail Server is almost always not encrypted. All data is freely viewable.
- For example, Gmail, Hotmail, Outlook do not use encryption
- Email is by default sent from server to server in clear text that can be read by anyone while in transit.
- Mail Server data can be easily accessed by any Server or Email Admin, at any time.
- For example: Gmail, Hotmail, Outlook have thousands of Server and Email Admins that can access this data.
- Email and Mail Server data is usually permanently kept on a mail server, even if you remember to click Delete.
- For example: Most large companies have data retention policies that require keeping data for many years.
- Most Email and Mail Servers have built-in “backdoor access” for government agencies. This means they can very easily access any data at any time.
- For example, google “Edward Snowden”.
“Email by default is not and was never intended to be a secure mechanism for sending data,” says Dr. Catherine J. Ullman, Senior Information Security Analyst for UB. “Although you need credentials to log in and access the e-mail in your mailbox, email is by default sent from server to server in clear text that can be read by anyone while in transit.”
NW Publisher app does not use Email or a Mail Server to share or transfer data.
Is NW Publisher app web-based? Does it share data via web servers? Can the data be accessed online?
No, NW Publisher app is not web-based. It must be installed on your mobile device.
We recommend brothers be very cautious about using web-based or cloud-based apps (such as Deckhand or Hourglass) to store congregation information. While web-based applications are convenient, we personally feel the direction and principles found in sfl do not permit web-based applications to store congregation data.
Web-based applications (like Hourglass or Deckhand) store all congregation and person data permanently online and do not generally use end-to-end encryption.
Web-based applications by nature must allow any website administrators, developers and potentially support personnel full access to everyone’s data. This means they can potentially access every single persons data in every single congregation. We do not feel comfortable with this, nor do we feel this complies with the principles and direction in sfl.
Web-based applications are also much more prone to hacking or data theft. They provide a single point for a hacker to attack and obtain every single persons data in every single congregation.
Web-based applications also rely on the honesty and integrity of worldly hosting companies, sometimes located in countries with poor data integrity records.
Web-based applications can even be subject to government or company subpoenas, whereby the software company or hosting company must provide access to everyone’s data.
NW Publisher app is not web based. Data cannot be opened or accessed by our developers, support staff, or anyone else.
Data Retention and Expiry
New World Scheduler strictly follows the branch Congregation Records Retention Policy (see sfla).
Obsolete data is removed as per sfla direction. This is automatically performed on January 1.
Old and unused congregations are automatically removed after 4 months of inactivity.
Data Removal and Deletion
NW Scheduler users can immediately and permanently delete all local data by clicking the Delete Congregation button and then uninstalling NW Scheduler.
- Note: You will need to manually delete any backups you have saved elsewhere.
App Administrators can immediately and permanently delete all app data by either Disabling NW Publisher app, or clicking the Delete Congregation button.