Signal tests usernames so you can avoid sharing your phone number

fer0n@lemm.ee to Technology@beehaw.org – 268 points –
Signal tests usernames so you can avoid sharing your phone number
theverge.com
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YES! The one main hurdle I've found (and the constant "share your contacts??" prompting). Good luck to them!

and the constant "share your contacts??" prompting

Why wouldn't you just share your contacts? And what does this have to do with that?

Because my contacts are none of their business, and it's fucking disgusting to even ask without the user going way out of their way to initiate it.

They're not. And they won't see any of your contacts. It just allows the app itself access to them.

There isn't a single service on the planet who I would trust to allow their app to see my contacts.

The app asking for the permission is not acceptable. The permission should not exist at all. Both mobile OS should only be permitting users to explicitly import contacts that they choose, with literally no way for any app to see the master list in any context.

Signal has been through every trial and tribulation in existence. They've been audited by a dozen different companies, they're open source, they've been subpoenaed by the government, etc. You're just being paranoid.

Why not? Uh, No. That's why. Not now, not the 100th time, not ever. I want it to stop asking. No.

Mmkay well there's no reason you shouldn't do that, so there's no reason you should see that prompt more than once, so don't expect anyone else to care. And this change won't affect that prompt.