this post was submitted on 17 Jul 2024
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Privacy

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Yes, you can use Signal without sharing your personal phone number. Here’s how I did it.

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[–] [email protected] 0 points 3 months ago (1 children)

”It’s important to maintain control of this phone number."

I strongly feel that this is false.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 0 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

~~If someone trys to register with an existing number then it wont work if its already being used.~~
Im not sure on this^
Better to enable a security pin if you are concerned.
The traditional phone system involvement is annoying.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Got a source for that? There have already been multiple contradicting sources posted saying this isn't true.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

I cant find any information that discusses the security risk. But it would seem that this transfering all content to the owner of the phone number is a standard feature.
So, maybe its not discussed because it doesn't frequently happen.
It doesnt seem like a trustworthy way to ensure users' content remains secure.
Update:
https://old.reddit.com/r/signal/comments/8r7tbc/someone_impersonating_me_using_my_old_number_what/
https://support.signal.org/hc/en-us/articles/360007062012-Change-Number
https://support.signal.org/hc/en-us/articles/360007062452-What-do-I-do-if-my-phone-is-lost-or-stolen
https://support.signal.org/hc/en-us/articles/360007059752-Backup-and-Restore-Messages