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Signal requiring phone number, thoughts on anonymity?
(sh.itjust.works)
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this post was submitted on 17 Oct 2023
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Privacy
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They've repeatedly stated that they're working on removing the need to share your phone number with your contacts, but that's taking some time, because they want to implement it in a way that does not involve storing your entire social graph on their servers.
You'll still have to sign up with your phone number, but the only thing that can be traced back is that your phone number is registered on Signal - and only by subpoenaing Signal, I believe.
Btw, the main thing to realise, is that Signal is trying to tread the delicate balance of being accessible and private. If you have the perfect private messenger but nobody uses it, that doesn't help democracy one bit. So starting out with an easier-to-implement mechanism that also helps adoption (because people can get notified when people they already have in their contact list join), that still protects against indiscriminate mass surveillance, makes sense to me, even if it means your contacts can still know who you are.