Messengers
Signal privacy rating
End-to-end encrypted messenger for text, voice and video calls, and groups, built on the Signal Protocol. Run by the non-profit Signal Foundation.
Summary
Signal scores 78 out of 100 (grade B) on the messengers criteria. It meets 5 of 8 criteria: open source, no trackers or telemetry, no ads or data sales, end-to-end encrypted by default and metadata protection. It partly meets no phone number needed. It does not meet independent audit and decentralized. It is based in the United States: Five Eyes member; subject to the US CLOUD Act.
Score 78 out of 100. How scoring works
Criteria
- Yes
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Yes
No trackers or telemetry Weight 3 of 3
Are the website and apps free of third-party trackers, with any analytics anonymous and any telemetry off by default?
Exodus finds no trackers in the Android app, and the privacy policy lists no analytics.
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Yes
No ads or data sales Weight 2 of 3
Is the product funded without advertising, ad targeting or selling user data?
Funded by donations to the non-profit Signal Foundation; the terms state it never sells or monetizes personal data.
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No
Independent audit Weight 2 of 3
Has an independent security or privacy audit been published within the last three years?
No independent audit is published; only academic analyses of the Signal Protocol exist.
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Yes
End-to-end encrypted by default Weight 3 of 3
Are all chats, including groups, end-to-end encrypted by default?
All messages and calls, including groups, use the Signal Protocol end to end.
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Partial
No phone number needed Weight 2 of 3
Can an account be created without a phone number?
A phone number is required to register, but it is hidden by default and contacts can be reached by username.
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Yes
Metadata protection Weight 2 of 3
Does the service minimize who-talks-to-whom metadata (for example sealed sender or no user identifiers)?
Sealed sender hides the sender from the server, and contact discovery runs in secure enclaves.
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No
Decentralized Weight 1 of 3
Can people run their own server or talk peer to peer?
One central service; the published server code cannot federate with the Signal network.