Telegram is a messaging app that gained popularity in 2021 after WhatsApp announced changes to its privacy policy that would allow it to share information with parent company Meta. But is Telegram better at handing over your data?
Is Telegram safe?
Antony Demetriades, VP at McAfee, told Trusted Reviews that while Telegram has been around since 2013, Telegram has only recently become a household name.
“If you hadn’t heard from Telegram by 2021, you wouldn’t be alone,” Demetriades said.
“The messaging and social media platform has gone from relative anonymity to one of the biggest players in the secret messaging business in less than a year. When WhatsApp unveiled a change to its Terms of Service informing users that their data would be shared with new parent company Meta, many people jumped overboard in search of a less intrusive messaging option.”
Just because Telegram has a more trusted reputation than WhatsApp doesn’t mean your messages are automatically protected. End-to-end encryption is crucial to keeping your messages private, and it’s a level of protection Telegram only offers in certain areas of its app.
“Telegram has positioned itself as an app dedicated to private and secure messaging. However, the fact that messages sent in Telegram don’t automatically use end-to-end encryption means it’s not as secure as privacy-oriented messaging platforms like Signal, which use end-to-end encryption -Provides encryption for all communications,” explained Demetriaden. . . .
Searchlight Security CTO and co-founder Dr. Gareth Owenson added that Telegram’s encryption also has its weaknesses.
“Telegram has a solid reputation as a secure messaging app, but that’s largely due to the features it offers, not strong encryption. Research by Royal Holloway recently found vulnerabilities in the cryptography used by Telegram,” said Dr. owenson
Telegram vs other messaging apps
So how does Telegram compare to other popular messaging apps like WhatsApp and Signal? Fennel Aurora, F-Secure’s Global Partner Product Advocate, told Trusted Reviews that from a technical perspective, there’s a clear winner.
“Signal is mostly seen as the security and privacy standard for this type of messaging app, and I mostly use it myself,” Aurora said.
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“That said, there are instances where Signal can be less private and less secure, depending on your definition — for example, Signal requires the use of a phone number to connect with other users… Telegram, for example, instead allows the use of a username, which can be a lot safer for many people”.
Comparitech’s privacy officer, Paul Bischoff, added that Telegram also requires users to opt-in for end-to-end encryption by creating a secret chat. The lack of standard end-to-end encryption can pose a privacy issue of its own.
Telegram chats are not end-to-end encrypted by default. Encrypted chats cannot be accessed from multiple devices,” said Bischoff, explaining that while the latter makes them more secure, they are less convenient than WhatsApp.
Should you move your chats to Telegram?
The general consensus from those we spoke to was that it’s safe to move your chats to Telegram, but Signal is better.
“With the availability of end-to-end encryption for private chats, Telegram can protect your private chats, but you cannot encrypt your group chats, one of the app’s most popular features. But if you’re looking for a premium end-to-end encrypted messaging app, then there are definitely better options,” said Demetriades.
However, Chris Hauk, Consumer Privacy Champion at Pixel Privacy, noted that Signal is less popular than other messaging apps, which may have tempted you to join Telegram if all your contacts are there.
“Many users don’t care about the data protection offered by their messaging app, but usually use the messaging apps of their friends and family,” says Hauk.
“Anyone with news of more than ‘Do we need milk?'” he asked. should consider using any of the three messaging services (Telegram, Signal and WhatsApp) while encouraging their friends and family to use the apps as well.”
Also, according to Brown, there’s no reason to leave Telegram if you’re already using it.
