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[-] liop7k@lemm.ee 20 points 6 days ago

What kind of private communication can we talk about if you must have a valid phone number to use Signal?! Lol

[-] danhab99@programming.dev 13 points 6 days ago

Signal recently implemented "usernames" instead of phone numbers

[-] liop7k@lemm.ee 18 points 6 days ago

But still, to use it, you need a phone number, which in many countries can only be purchased with a passport. That's the main rule. If privacy is really needed, personal identification should be excluded so that it's basically impossible to determine who owns the account.

[-] girlthing@lemmy.blahaj.zone 20 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

Pretty sure you still need a phone number for an account, though - the usernames are just for sharing your contact with other people.

Most peoples' phone numbers are easily linked to their identity. Which means the government knows who's using Signal.

Usernames are definitely an improvement, but this is a fundamental limitation in Signal's design.

[-] Thorned_Rose@sh.itjust.works 1 points 5 days ago

If you want to get really technical, each Signal account actually has a 'secret' account number that the phone number is linked to. The phone number requirement is actually a means to reduce spam and scam accounts.

[-] girlthing@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 5 days ago

So they could have replaced it with, like, email verification or something, but they instead stuck to the design that lets governments identify all users?

[-] danhab99@programming.dev 1 points 6 days ago

Then I'd delete my old phone number account and start fresh.. not exactly the best option but all things considered you might have too

[-] Phoenicianpirate@lemm.ee 2 points 6 days ago
[-] pathief@lemmy.world 6 points 5 days ago
[-] ikidd@lemmy.world 3 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

No, but it's easy enough to be both. There's a pile of IM packages out there that manage it.

Metadata is valuable info, look at what a pen register nets law enforcement and why it's the first step in an investigation. The idea that a messaging app that's supposed to be used for political action but the chain of association is visible and verified is absolutely suspect.

[-] pathief@lemmy.world 3 points 5 days ago

You say "easy enough" but there are some serious tradeoffs when removing phone numbers from the equation. My mom can use Signal without my help but she wouldn't be able to use SimpleX.

Signal is a fantastic middle ground messaging app that is secure enough for me to use and easy enough for my mom to use.

I also have SimpleX but I have exactly 1 contact there...

this post was submitted on 27 Mar 2025
526 points (96.8% liked)

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