All kidding aside from the other comments, Telegram is not secure or private. It’s not E2EE by default and getting it enabled is per-chat and convoluted. Frankly, I wouldn’t even trust it with cat pics I send to the bros let alone private messages… not to be fear mongering but do yourself a favor and get off Telegram.
Signal, despite some criticism that it’s “Not private enough etc.”, strikes a balance between usability, privacy and security. It’s also miles better than Telegram on all fronts.
A big issue we have in the privacy community is that it’s easy to have an “all or nothing mindset”. Even small steps in the right direction can be hugely beneficial. So, Signal is great. Use Signal.
I found that once I plainly and simply explained it to those I want to stay in touch with and stated that this will be the easiest/fastest/only way to reach me, a lot of my connections actually adopted Signal. Once they realized that it’s just “whatsapp but more private and secure” more of their connections started to adopt it etc.
I did notice that for most of my friends they convince themselves that they can’t leave other platforms without loosing their connections, and end up keeping their accounts there in addition to Signal - but I’m living proof that it’s not that hard.
I’m a big proponent of “protocols not platforms” and the above is a great example of why this is the future we need to strive for. FOSS protocols that are immutable, secure and private (as needed).
Hypothetical: If, for example, Signal and Whatsapp were built on the same protocol - you could move to Signal without loosing your contacts/not being reachable etc. Whatsapp would also likely be less shitty because it would’ve been built on a strong protocol too.
I’m actively trying to limit my reliance on US technology, and while I appreciate Signal is a US organisation I’m going to have to make compromises and adopt a “least bad” mentality
I also have signal but for now most of the criminals I need to communicate with are on TG
Lmao even more reason to move away from TG tbh
Well how would I go about my business then?
Thanks for the detailed reply, will do as only a couple of mates have adopted it anyway and they’re double bagging with WhatsApp anyway
Good luck!
I found that once I plainly and simply explained it to those I want to stay in touch with and stated that this will be the easiest/fastest/only way to reach me, a lot of my connections actually adopted Signal. Once they realized that it’s just “whatsapp but more private and secure” more of their connections started to adopt it etc.
I did notice that for most of my friends they convince themselves that they can’t leave other platforms without loosing their connections, and end up keeping their accounts there in addition to Signal - but I’m living proof that it’s not that hard.
I’m a big proponent of “protocols not platforms” and the above is a great example of why this is the future we need to strive for. FOSS protocols that are immutable, secure and private (as needed).
Hypothetical: If, for example, Signal and Whatsapp were built on the same protocol - you could move to Signal without loosing your contacts/not being reachable etc. Whatsapp would also likely be less shitty because it would’ve been built on a strong protocol too.
It makes alot of sense.
I’m actively trying to limit my reliance on US technology, and while I appreciate Signal is a US organisation I’m going to have to make compromises and adopt a “least bad” mentality