Signal data collection: Difference between revisions
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Signal has publicly disclosed that they have received legal requests for subscriber's names, telephone numbers, histories, and contacts and Signal has said that they were unable to supply that information because it was never collected by Signal in the first place. These incidents have been reported in the media<ref>{{Cite web |title=FBI demands Signal user data, but there’s not much to hand over |url=https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/10/fbi-demands-signal-user-data-but-theres-not-much-to-hand-over/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240401002649/https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/10/fbi-demands-signal-user-data-but-theres-not-much-to-hand-over/ |archive-date=04/01/24}}</ref> | Signal has publicly disclosed that they have received legal requests for subscriber's names, telephone numbers, histories, and contacts and Signal has said that they were unable to supply that information because it was never collected by Signal in the first place. These incidents have been reported in the media<ref>{{Cite web |title=FBI demands Signal user data, but there’s not much to hand over |url=https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/10/fbi-demands-signal-user-data-but-theres-not-much-to-hand-over/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240401002649/https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/10/fbi-demands-signal-user-data-but-theres-not-much-to-hand-over/ |archive-date=04/01/24}}</ref> | ||
Signal's website states<ref>{{Cite web |title=Grand jury subpoena for Signal user data, Eastern District of Virginia |url=https://signal.org/bigbrother/eastern-virginia-grand-jury/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250302042109/https://signal.org/bigbrother/eastern-virginia-grand-jury/ |archive-date=03/02/25}}</ref>: | Signal's website states<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Grand jury subpoena for Signal user data, Eastern District of Virginia |url=https://signal.org/bigbrother/eastern-virginia-grand-jury/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250302042109/https://signal.org/bigbrother/eastern-virginia-grand-jury/ |archive-date=03/02/25}}</ref>: | ||
''"We’ve designed the Signal service to minimize the data we retain about Signal users, so the only information we can produce in response to a request like this is the date and time a user registered with Signal and the last date of a user’s connectivity to the Signal service.'' | ''"We’ve designed the Signal service to minimize the data we retain about Signal users, so the only information we can produce in response to a request like this is the date and time a user registered with Signal and the last date of a user’s connectivity to the Signal service.'' | ||
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===Signal's response=== | ===Signal's response=== | ||
Signal was not convinced to abandon this data collection and they began to roll out the change in 2020 without clear communication about the new feature which resulted in a lot of confusion for users, many of whom only learned about this feature when they were promoted to create a PIN. There were many social media posts expressing confusion over what the feature was and what it was doing. Even years after the change was made some Signal users were/are still unsure about what data | Signal was not convinced to abandon this data collection and they began to roll out the change in 2020 without clear communication about the new feature which resulted in a lot of confusion for users, many of whom only learned about this feature when they were promoted to create a PIN. There were many social media posts expressing confusion over what the feature was and what it was doing. Even years after the change was made some Signal users were/are still unsure about what data Signal collects or were/are convinced that Signal doesn't collect any data at all<ref>{{Cite web |title=What info does Signal store about it's user? |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/signal/comments/q5tlg1/what_info_does_signal_store_about_its_user/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211011111619/https://old.reddit.com/r/signal/comments/q5tlg1/what_info_does_signal_store_about_its_user/ |archive-date=10/11/21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=About data collection and data delivery |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/signal/comments/1id3xu8/about_data_collection_and_data_delivery/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250201072439/https://old.reddit.com/r/signal/comments/1id3xu8/about_data_collection_and_data_delivery/?ref=readnext |archive-date=02/01/25}}</ref> | ||
This confusion is understandable, since Signal's own website continues to state that they do not collect the information they are collecting. The first line of their "Terms & Privacy Policy" page reads: "Signal is designed to never collect or store any sensitive information."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Signal Terms & Privacy Policy |url=https://signal.org/legal/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250302122622/https://signal.org/legal/ |archive-date=03/02/25}}</ref> | This confusion is understandable, since Signal's own website continues to state that they do not collect the information they are collecting. The first line of their "Terms & Privacy Policy" page reads: "Signal is designed to never collect or store any sensitive information."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Signal Terms & Privacy Policy |url=https://signal.org/legal/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250302122622/https://signal.org/legal/ |archive-date=03/02/25}}</ref> | ||
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There is no indication on Signal's older pages, which claim they don't collect this information, that the data collection policy discussed on those pages is now outdated either. | There is no indication on Signal's older pages, which claim they don't collect this information, that the data collection policy discussed on those pages is now outdated either. | ||
Requests have been made for Signal to update their policy following the change in data collection | |||
'''Workarounds''' | '''Workarounds''' | ||