This enables the building of clients for non-traditional platforms like KaiOS (supported by Telekram), or S30+/Mocor Feature phones (still in development). The protocol was developed by Nikolai Durov and other developers at Telegram and, as of version 2.0, is based on 256-bit symmetric AES encryption, 2048-bit RSA encryption and Diffie–Hellman key exchange. Telegram stated that it does not have access to the data, while the platform will share the information only with the authorized recipient. When an online service requires such identification documents and verification, it forwards the information to the platform with the user’s permission. It asks users to upload their own official documents such as passport, identity card, driver license, etc. It features a website widget that could be embedded into websites, allowing users to sign into a third party website with their Telegram account.
Following the launch of Stars, Telegram released several updates to their functionality, such as allowing Stars to be used to unlock media in channels or to buy gifts for other users. In late 2020, Durov announced that the company was working on its own ad platform, and would integrate non-targeted ads in public one-to-many channels, that already were selling and displaying ads in the form of regular messages. Such bots are used, among other things, to emulate and play old games in the app and inform users about vaccine availability for COVID-19. For users Kiekka Casino who signed in from the European Economic Area (EEA) or United Kingdom, the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) are supported by storing data only on servers in the Netherlands, and designating a London-based company as their responsible data controller. Premium users have access to extra stickers, emoji, reactions, and customization features like a special badge and the ability to change the look of their messages in chats.
Similar apps
On 30 March 2020, an Elasticsearch database holding 42 million records containing user IDs and phone numbers of Iranian users was exposed online without a password. They criticized how, unless modified first, the default general security model stores all contacts, messages and media together with their decryption keys on its servers continuously; and that it does not enable end-to-end encryption for messages by default. Along with the shared photographs, anonymous accounts shared the women’s private information, including phone numbers and social media profiles, encouraging members of the group to contact the women and ask for sexual favors.
Specific users can be tagged in the group by adding @username to a message, where “username” is that particular user’s username. Ownership of channels and groups can be transferred to one of the admins if the owner wishes to give up their rights. They support flexible admin rights and can use bots for moderation to prevent spam and unwanted activity. Any user can also send a message to a special “Saved Messages” chat as a form of bookmarking them.
ChatGPT Atlas
- In January and February 2018, the company ran a private sale of futures contracts for Grams, raising around $1.7 billion.
- Whether I was checking messages, accessing group chats, or managing multiple accounts, the experience was smooth and reliable.
- The ban applied to non-U.S.-based purchasers as well, because Telegram could not prevent the re-sale of Grams to U.S. citizens on a secondary market, as the anonymity of users was one of the key features of TON.
- It was the most downloaded app worldwide in January 2021, with 1 billion downloads globally as of late August 2021.
- Telegram then gained over 70 million new users as a result of an outage which affected Facebook and its affiliates on 5 October 2021.
- On 19 June 2022, Telegram announced that it had reached 700 million monthly active users.
Similar to other social platforms, Telegram users can post stories, a type of short-form content. In June 2021, an update introduced a new bot menu where users can browse and send commands while in a chat with a bot. Bots are also commonly used for businesses to communicate with customers as the bot APIs integrate with communication platforms so that Telegram messages can be sent and received in an omnichannelinbox. Certain approved bots are also able to integrate into the attachment menu, making them accessible in any chat. Auto download settings can also be applied based on chat type such as group, channel or private. Similarly, users can hide their phone number and profile photo from people based on categories such as Non-Contacts or by adding exceptions.
Telegram (software)
Less known is Olvid, which replaces the phone number with its identity scheme. Signal is ad-free, does not collect or track data, and is practically non-communal in its functionality, as it is used primarily as a means of one-on-one conversations. Its open-source code welcomes the level of transparency, and the application is a strong tool to engage in encrypted messaging, calling, and file sharing with a more limited group. Telegram open APIs have allowed developers to create their own applications, meaning that the ecosystem is not tied to a particular official client. Telegram also allows you to have several accounts on a single client, which may be helpful when you do not want your personal and business communication to be mixed.
- It is simple and easy to use, and thus a favorite among users seeking low levels of complexity.
- On 26 February 2014, the German consumer organization Stiftung Warentest evaluated several data-protection aspects of Telegram, along with other popular instant-messaging clients.
- In April 2021, the Payments 2.0 upgrade enabled bot payments within any chat, using third-party services such as Sberbank, Tranzoo, Payme, CLICK, LiqPay and ECOMMPAY to process the credit card information.
- Some use it in the form of a basic chat program; there are those who build communities, file sharing, or even bots.
- ISIS has used Telegram for recruiting attempts with some cells recommending the app to their followers.
Premium features
Once launched, a group voice chat will remain active and open to all group members until an admin specifically closes it. In December 2019, Bloomberg News moved their messenger-based newsletter service from WhatsApp to Telegram after the former banned bulk and automated messaging. Channels offer detailed statistics on view counts, user growth and interactions, also visible only to admins. Posting in the channel is anonymous, though admins can choose to add signatures to their posts. Secret Chats support perfect forward secrecy and switch encryption keys after a key has been used 100 times or a week has passed.
Conclusion: Mastering Your Telegram Workflow in 2025
Telegram has public APIs with which developers can access the same functionality as Telegram’s official apps to build their own instant messaging applications. It is automatically updated and will most likely get new versions faster than the apps in the Play Store and App Store. The built-in media viewer supports common media formats – JPEG, PNG, WebP for images and H.264 and HEVC in videos in MP4 container and MP3, FLAC, Vorbis, Opus and AAC for audio. Telegram has various client apps, some developed by Telegram Messenger LLP and some by the community.
On 9 June 2019, The Intercept released leaked Telegram messages exchanged between current Brazilian Minister of Justice and former judge Sérgio Moro and federal prosecutors. MTProto 2.0 is seen by qualified cryptographers as a vast improvement to Telegram’s security. The Telegram team responded that the flaw does not affect message security and that “a future patch would address the concern”. Nevertheless, they said they saw “no reason why Telegram should use a less secure encryption scheme when more secure (and at least as efficient) solutions exist”. In December 2015, two researchers from Aarhus University published a report in which they demonstrated that MTProto 1.0 did not achieve indistinguishability under chosen-ciphertext attack (IND-CCA) or authenticated encryption. The EFF said that the results “should not be read as endorsements of individual tools or guarantees of their security”, and that they were merely indications that the projects were “on the right track”.
The optional paid subscription gives users increased limits in the app, such as larger file uploads, faster download speeds, unlimited voice message transcription, as well as numerous other increases such as the number of pinned chats and folders. While any user can upload custom emoji to the platform, the use of custom emoji in chats is only available to users with Telegram Premium. In October 2024, Telegram added increased messaging limits for bots, allowing bots to send up to 1000 messages per second to their users. In the same menu, users can restrict the circle of people who can call them or invite them to groups and channels, while Premium users also have the option to restrict who can send them text and voice messages. In channels, users can start a livestream, that is able to integrate with third-party apps such as OBS Studio and XSplit.