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All apps that require a phone number are a scam, privacy-wise. Use Matrix.
by GNU_James 6y ago
All apps that require a phone number are a scam, privacy-wise. Use Matrix.
- vinay427 6y agoWhat does "scam" even mean here? I know what I'm signing up for, privacy-wise, when I provide Signal my phone number and access to some of my contacts, and I clearly get something in exchange.
- m4rtink 6y agoI would not call passing phone numbers (or reversivle hashes thereof) of my friends to a third part a scam. I would call it treason.
- GNU_James 6y agoWhy are you providing your phone number to anyone? Software should be free.
- growse 6y agoThe software is free...?
- vinay427 6y agoI prefer free/libre software as well. I'm really not trying to sound inane when I say that I provide my phone number for the same reason I provide my phone number directly to my friends with whom I would like to communicate. It allows people I know to identify me among the billions of other people who have phone numbers. To repeat my question, how are apps that require a phone number scamming users?
- thekyle 6y agoSignal is GPLv3 software, so it is free as in freedom.
- codethief 6y ago> All apps that require a phone number are a scam, privacy-wise. Use Matrix. …and leak my message content, IP address and social network to everyone who cares to look? You're making a very broad claim here and implicitly assume a very specific threat model. I can come up with dozens of other threat models that are more relevant to me and everyone I know and that completely invalidate your statement.
- MayeulC 6y ago> …and leak my message content, IP address and social network to everyone who cares to look Would you care detailing this? - Private conversations are E2EE by default now, group chats can be E2EE. - IP addresses are not leaked except when videoconferencing. This is also the case on Signal, mind you, unless you opt-in to use their proxy in the settings. - Social networks? Care to explain that? - Who is everyone? Your server admin? Your ISP? Someone MITMing your HTTPS connections? I do not doubt the rest of your post, but the above criticism is just unfair, given what I know of the Matrix protocol. Of course, I could be mistaken.