If you’re interested in secure communications, you’ve probably heard of Telegram, a cloud-based messaging and VOIP service. Telegram allows users to send messages, photos, video streams, audio files, and other files anonymously.
However, despite all the hype, Telegram is not a particularly secure communications app. Messages are encrypted only on the client side and cryptography experts have criticized the application’s security architecture. For example, all contacts and messages are stored along with their decryption keys and the app does not have end-to-end encryption for messages. Additionally, Telegram’s custom encryption protocol has been shown to have significant security and reliability issues.
For these reasons, many users still send messages via Telegram but want to remain anonymous while using the service.
More specifically, many people would like to use Telegram but hide their Telephone numbers from the application. This article will explain how to do just that.
Can I hide my phone number on Telegram?
When you sign up for Telegram, you must give the app permission to make and receive calls on your phone and give it your phone number. Unfortunately, if you want to sign up for Telegram on your primary phone, you have to provide this information.
However, Telegram does not use the number to contact you and does not share the number with other users. Your account username becomes your identification token for the service.
Other Telegram users will only be able to see your phone number if you have theirs stored on your phone and you sync your contacts with Telegram. That includes friends, anyone in your phone contacts, and anyone you’ve voluntarily shared your phone number with.
It’s a simple system that maintains a semblance of privacy. As long as you don’t add the person’s number to your phone contacts, all they will see is your Telegram username. However, there is a way to hide your phone number on Telegram. To do so, follow these steps:
- Open Telegram and tap Settings, located in the lower left corner.
- Tap Privacy & Security.
- Tap on Phone number.
- touch anyone My contacts (your contacts will see your phone number) or Nobody (no one will see your phone number).
This will prevent anyone from seeing your phone number through the app. However, please note that your phone number will still be linked to your account.
More Telegram privacy tips
Telegram tries to maintain your privacy within the application. Messages are stored on your device, not on Telegram servers, keeping them safe from prying eyes.
When a message is deleted, it is deleted for both parties, so you can control what the other person sees in the chat. However, there are a few more settings you can make in Terminal to make your conversations even more private.
Below are just a couple of ways to make Telegram more secure.
Self-destructive chats
Telegram has a secret chat feature that uses end-to-end encryption and will self-destruct at a preset time. You’ll need to set a timer for these chats, but other than that, the process is automatic. For those chats where you never want to be found, this is a very cool feature.
- Open a secret chat on Telegram.
- Select the three dot menu icon.
- Select Set self-destruct timer and set a time.
Once the timer has started, all messages within that chat session will be deleted when it expires. Additionally, Telegram disables the screenshot function of your smartphone when you are in a secret chat, adding another layer of security.
Hide screenshots from your phone gallery
If you don’t want your Telegram screenshots to appear in your phone’s media gallery, you can hide them. You can specify exactly what media can and cannot be viewed from outside of Telegram, which can prevent accidentally revealing images while scrolling through them.
On Android:
- Select Telegram Settings.
- Tap on chat settings.
- Lever Save to gallery disabled.
On iOS:
- Open the Settings application.
- Select Privacy and photos.
- Lever Telegram disabled.
You will still be able to view that media from Telegram, but it will not be visible from anywhere else on your device.
Set a password
If other people have access to your phone and you want to keep it private, you can set a password for Telegram. This locks the app and prevents anyone else from using or viewing it unless they know your password.
- Open Telegram and tap Settings.
- Tap Privacy & Security.
- Tap Access code Closeso Activate password.
- Enter and re-enter your password if prompted.
From now on, you will need to enter your PIN when you start Telegram for the first time. Make sure you remember your PIN or keep it in a safe place; It is the only way to access your Telegram account.
Hide last seen for selected contacts on Telegram
As you probably know, Telegram shows other people the last time you used the app. If you’re trying to avoid someone or want to chat without being seen, follow these steps.
- Open Settings in the Telegram application.
- Select Privacy & Security.
- Tap Last seen & Online.
- Select any All, My contactseither Nobody.
How to create a Telegram account without your phone number
As stated above, you will see that there is no way to sign up for Telegram without giving them a phone number. The thing is, it doesn’t have to be YOUR number.
Because Telegram uses the number only for initial account verification, you don’t need to provide them with a number that connects to you in any way. There are several ways to set up Telegram without leaving any traceable connection to your real identity.
borrow a landline
It is not necessary to use a mobile phone to register on Telegram. If you can’t receive an SMS, Telegram will call a voice number and give you the verification code that way. There are still pay phones in the world and some of them even accept incoming calls.
Alternatively, you can borrow a phone from a library or store. Many health centers have pay phones in the lobby where people can make calls. If you can take a Telegram call, you can use that number and be untraceable.
Use Google Voice
Google Voice is the VOIP service provided by Google. A Google Voice account gives you a local phone number, which must be connected to a Google account, but creating a new, anonymous Google account is easy.
- Sign out of all your Google accounts.
- Sign up for a new Google account.
- Once you have a new account, connect it to a new Google Voice account
- Choose a phone number
- Sign up for Telegram and provide your Google Voice number as a contact number.
- Retrieve the authorization code from your Google Voice account and enter it in Telegram.
Use a temporary number
If you don’t want to jump through all the hoops of creating a new Google pseudonym, you can sign up for a burner number. Any number of services will give you a temporary phone numberor even a second number, without you having to do much to verify or establish your identity.
There are several sites you can use, but Toll-free numberhas a free service that is ideal for your purposes here. You can get a temporary number from this site completely free, a number that other people then recycle and use over and over again.
Since this site and Telegram are completely unrelated companies, there will be no connection to prove that you are the particular user who used that temporary number to register for Telegram.
- Visit Toll-free number and choose one of the numbers shown.
- In Telegram, enter the number you selected
- Wait for the Telegram SMS with the verification code to appear on FreePhoneNum.
- Enter that verification code in Telegram.
Use a burner phone
It is still possible to buy old phones (that is, phones that are not smartphones but still work on the cellular network) in places like thrift stores or on the private market. Or you can buy someone else’s old phone, which still has SMS service temporarily, for a few dollars.
This is a bit of a shady part of the phone resale world because all of these phones are usually bought specifically to commit crimes, but in and of itself, it’s not illegal to have a phone that isn’t connected to you.
Once you have the phone, use it to sign up for Telegram and then throw it away. You will then be able to log in to Telegram on your main phone using your Telegram username and password, and you will not have to verify your identity anymore. Just make sure you have “Two-Factor Verification” turned off in Settings to ensure you never need that phone number again.
Frequent questions
Can I hide my last name on Telegram?
Unfortunately, Telegram does not allow us to hide our first or last name from others. But you can change your name within the app. Tap the three horizontal lines in the top left corner and tap Settings. On this new page, click on the three vertical dots in the upper right corner. On the menu, select Edit name. Type the name you want to display and click the check mark in the upper right corner.
Final thoughts
While not the most secure messaging app, Telegram does offer some security and there are some steps you can take to make the app even more secure. By following the tips outlined above, you can easily set up a Telegram account anonymously and adjust your settings to protect your privacy.
Do you have any other tips to make Telegram more secure? Share them in the comments below!
