Signal is working on changes that will allow users to set up Signal Desktop as a standalone device, without the need for a mobile phone. In the meantime,
Signal Desktop will also get more options so you can use it better as a primary device when it is still linked to your phone. Both changes will significantly improve the user experience of Signal on a computer or laptop.
[…]
To register on Signal Desktop, a phone number will still be required. However, this can be either a mobile number or a landline, including basic mobile phones or dumb phones. This will make Signal accessible to users without a smartphone.
I think the last paragraph you quoted is quite important:
To register on Signal Desktop, a phone number will still be required. However, this can be either a mobile number or a landline, including basic mobile phones or dumb phones. This will make Signal accessible to users without a smartphone.
As this makes it clear that Signal’s phone number requirements will remain in place, where as the title of the article and this topic post almost imply that Signal is getting rid of there phone number requirement altogether (which they are not).
You might say “mobile number” and “phone number” are two clearly different things, but to someone briefly scanning this, among other reasons, I could easily see confusion arising from that wording.
With that nitpicking around the headline out of the way this is quite interesting news. I’ll be quite interested to see what official Signal Marketing social media channels have to say about this as it develops.
Yes. I included it because I didn’t want people to get confused.
That’s why they didn’t use either term and used “mobile phone” instead. Because right now, Signal desktop depends heavily on your phone. If you fail to regularly update Signal on mobile, you could lose your Signal desktop connection. Signal is trying to make their desktop version less dependent on your phone. The way it currently works, your phone is considered your primary device.
Signal is working on the ability to make their desktop less of an extension of your phone so you can sign up to Signal via desktop.
It’s definitely a step in the right direction. I wonder if they’ll support VoIP numbers eventually?
I would be surprised if the did this anytime soon, considering the past statements made by Signal stating that the phone number requirement was essential to reducing spam on the platform.
Unlike a landline or “regular” smart/mobile phone number (sim/esim). There are numerous free and nearly free VoIP providers that Signal would potentially want to block to reduce spam even if they did begin accepting VoIP numbers in some limited capacity.
Phone number are evil. You don’t own them (just renting from isp). Cellular connection are extremely easy to track (IMEI, IMSI, possible backdoors in modem proprietary firmware). Any number can be lost, people can move. It is extremely inconvenient to update them everywhere. SS7 contains CRITICAL vulnerabilities (see video from Veritasium) allowing to hijack SMS or even call. They also get “hacked” because of SMS (official post) Is this what they call security?
Phone numbers costs money. Why I need to pay for phone number just to sign up?
It is really unfortunate that Signal doesn’t allow to sign up by login/pass and just use usernames. Or at least email sign-up…
I don’t think they really took advantage of using the mobile platform for spam prevention—it’s easier to emulate a browser than a phone (see Sim Farms / Archive).
You find a phone number of an average person and anyone can find their passwords, emails, real name, and home address just from that. Signal makes it significantly easier to sign up than something like WhatsApp—needing only a phone number, and not necessarily one with a good reputation. Given that, I think the real way to prevent spam and phishing is to push hard on usernames. Phone numbers leak all the time, and everyone knows them; usernames you can change for each new contact or whenever you get spam, and they don’t really leak as they aren’t used online.
I do admit it was a good idea for Signal to require a phone number for the contact-based network effect. But once you’ve completed moving your contact list onto Signal, there’s no need to share a phone number again.
The phone number requirement is really annoying and a compromise that I’ve made in order to use Signal. What Signal should really be spending its time on is coming up with an alternative to phone numbers while still preventing spam and other nefarious activities. Getting a landline or a mobile number requires KYC in most countries.
I agree. The spam excuse, while legitimate, sort of goes against Signal’s stated goal. Most countries require KYC to get a number. Also, a phone number is rented, as you say. There has to be a better way that enhances privacy and security. I feel like Signal has wasted time and resources on stupid ideas like stickers.
Couldn’t agree more. I would leave Signal if a better alternative popped up. The phone number requirement is really annoying and actually makes me feel less private and safe.
I do agree that the phone number requirement is annoying, though I would also like to say that thanks to those “stupid ideas” like stickers and stories I’ve actually had wider success in getting non technical acquaintances to adopt Signal.
I do admit it was a good idea for Signal require a phone number for the contact-based network effect. But once you’ve completed moving your contact list onto Signal, there’s no need to share a phone number again.
Unfortunately I don’t think spam prevention really works if you let the spammers on to begin with, thus the KYC adjacent phone number requirement.
Back to the topic at hand, it would be very nice to be able to have a Desktop Signal app which is decoupled from a Signal app on my phone. That way I could for example, have two Signal accounts and not need two instances of Signal installed on my phone.
Telegram doesn’t require that you verify your phone number when you use the desktop app for the first time. As long as you are logged in on other devices, including other desktop devices, Telegram will let you confirm you are the account owner without verifying your phone number. That’s because they also send the code to Telegram on all your other linked devices.
Signal doesn’t work that way. Signal always requires that you have your phone, i.e., you primary device, in order to sign in to your account on desktop. Specifically, they require that you use the Signal phone app to confirm the link to your desktop device.
I understand that this announcement is not enough for you, which is fair, but’s it’s still a significant change compared to how Signal desktop currently works.
Your criticisms are valid. One of my biggest regrets is updating my phone number on my Google account when I moved cities. I wish I had left it with the old number which someone else would have owned by that point. However, that would have still been risky.
True. For those of us who are lucky enough to live in countries where KYC is not required to use a SIM or know people who live in those countries, I am not sure that it is possible to maintain an online account after registration, if you eventually lose the number.
I created a Telegram account with a virtual American number that I lost access to years ago, because I only paid to have access to it for a week or a month. That number either doesn’t exist anymore or is frequently being recycled.
And yet, I’m still able to maintain my Telegram account after all these years, in part because Telegram also sends verification codes via their app to devices where you are already logged in. But even if Signal did that, the risk of losing your account is still ever present.
I wonder if Signal would still require phone numbers if most countries did not require ID registration to buy or use a SIM?
What do you mean by this? Signal already allows usernames, what would pushing hard mean? Forcing new users to create one when you sign up?
WhatsApp has yet to allow usernames despite announcing it a long time ago.
I don’t know if Signal does much advertising, but one way to encourage people to use them is to make ads about dating. It’s very common for women who have reservations about giving their phone numbers to give their social media handles instead. Encouraging young people to use Signal username could make a difference.
However, I understand that in the context of dating, some people want to be able to see other people’s social media profiles before accepting a date. Even if they can already see your pictures on a dating app, your IG profile probably reveals more about you. I would not be surprised if in 2026 not being on social media would be seen as a red flag for any potential first dates.
Exactly this. I would not be surprised if they are working on it, but haven’t found a solution yet. It doesn’t appear to be an easy problem to solve.
This is actually really huge for a lot of people. This opens the door to two groups of users:
Those without a smartphone or those who choose to not have a smartphone.
Potential Linux phone users.
So many arguments against dumbphones is that you would lose access to Signal. At least these people would still have proper access to Signal, just on their schedule, which is exactly what many of them crave.
Can’t Signal already be used with dumb phones? What I mean is, does phone number verification for a Signal account require that your SIM car be in the phone where Signal is installed?
I ask this because I once tried to sign up to Signal on a phone with no SIM, while the phone number I was trying to register was in a different phone. It didn’t work, and I found that weird.
Can messaging apps read if your SIM card is in the phone have the app installed in?
I think its stupid to require SIM cards to be in the phone you are registering a Signal account with.
Why does it matter if it’s in another phone, if the phone number is not linked to any Signal account?
It doesn’t make sense to me.
My point is, when it comes to signing up to Signal a smartphone, you should be able to register an account with a number that is inside a dumb phone. Hell, I should be able to register an account if the phone and SIM card are in different countries. As long as the person who has the SIM sends me the code, it should work.
I don’t have much to add here, though as far as I know, partially from reading the topic thread I’ll link below (which I suggest you give a look) there are VoIP options for use with Signal that work outside of the USA.
In my case, yes I have retained control of the VoIP number which is tied to a Signal account.
