Signal founder criticizes Telegram: “There’s nothing private”

The publication Cybernews reported on the statements of the founder of Signal, a cryptography specialist Moxie Marlinspike, made in an interview with the YouTube channel Sabrina Halper Show. The discussion was prompted by reports of a possible slowdown in Telegram in Russia, as well as statements by the messenger’s founder, Pavel Durov, regarding this issue.

Marlinspike expressed doubts that Telegram can be considered a confidential messenger. According to him, Telegram does not provide complete privacy of correspondence. He noted that Telegram is a cloud-based messaging system where user data is stored on the company’s servers. According to the specialist, every message sent or received is stored in a database in plain text, access to which is controlled by the organization itself.

The Question of Access to User Data

During the interview, Marlinspike also mentioned the situation with Durov’s arrest in France. He stated that Signal’s architecture prevents the service from accessing the contents of users’ messages and is unable to provide them upon request from authorities. In his assessment, the key difference between the platforms is that Telegram has access to user data and can potentially respond to official requests.

Marlinspike emphasized that if a similar situation had occurred with the Russian authorities, the conversation with Telegram’s management might have been less formal. He expressed the opinion that the company found itself in a position where it had to interact with government agencies precisely because it technically possessed user data.

Criticism of Telegram’s Image as a Secure Service

In the interview, Marlinspike also commented on the global perception of Telegram. According to him, the company has managed to convince a wide audience that the service is a fully encrypted messenger, and that its founder positions himself as a dissident. He also pointed out that the founder regularly visits Russia, and he claims that the development team and their families are located there.

Similar statements from Signal management

Previously, Signal President Meredith Whittaker expressed similar assessments. In January, she responded to a social media post by X discussing Telegram’s focus on privacy. Whittaker stated that Telegram cannot be considered a service focused on user privacy.

According to her, Telegram’s encryption is limited and not enabled by default. Whittaker emphasized that the service actively promotes privacy, but in practice, in her opinion, the level of user data protection remains limited.

Features of Telegram Encryption

As Cybernews notes, users widely believe that Telegram, like other popular messaging apps, uses end-to-end encryption. In fact, this feature is present, but it is not enabled by default. To use it, you must manually enable “secret chats” mode.

The publication notes that the distinction between standard chats and secure conversations remains unclear to many users. This, according to the authors of the material, contributes to the idea of ​​complete encryption of all correspondence in the service, although in practice it is used only in certain modes of communication.