• girlthing@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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    7 days ago

    Pretty sure they still store the phone number you sign up with, though - the usernames are just for sharing your contact with other people.

    Most peoples’ phone numbers are easily linked to their identity. Which means the government knows who’s using Signal.

    Usernames are definitely an improvement, but this is a fundamental limitation in Signal’s design.

    • Thorned_Rose@sh.itjust.works
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      6 days ago

      If you want to get really technical, each Signal account actually has a ‘secret’ account number that the phone number is linked to. The phone number requirement is actually a means to reduce spam and scam accounts.

      • girlthing@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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        6 days ago

        So they could have replaced it with, like, email verification or something, but they instead stuck to the design that lets governments identify all users?

        <Insert rampant and unfounded speculation about FBI compromise here>