After initial tests since last fall, the team at the messenger Signal, known for its focus on security and data protection, has launched officially announced its plans to implement usernames in its app for the first time. These are primarily intended to replace the need to use telephone numbers to contact us and the technology can now be tested in the beta versions of Signal Messenger.
The team had already formulated the first ideas for putting contact details on user names in 2019. A related technology is the signal pin, which has been available since 2020, which makes it possible to restore your own profile, settings, blacklists and contacts without a phone number if your device is lost. The team had already confirmed the goal of fully supporting user names in an interview with Golem.de in spring 2022.
In the future, user names will primarily be used to establish contact. The name itself as well as a QR code or a link can be passed on. This does not replace the previously used signal profile with a self-selected name. The technology should explicitly not be used as a log-in or identifier, such as in social networks. The Signal makers also don’t want to offer a searchable directory of usernames. Contact can only be made if the user name of the person you are looking for is entered exactly. The team points out that the name can be changed at any time, which existing contacts should not notice.
However, the use of telephone numbers in Signal will not be completely replaced with the new user names. These are still necessary for registration. In the future, the telephone numbers will be hidden by default and will no longer be visible to every chat contact. However, if the contacts have already saved the number in the phone book, it will continue to be displayed. In addition, there should be an optional option to prevent being searched and found using your own phone number. This also makes it possible to conceal the use of Signal from third parties.