Protecting Privacy: Vulnerabilities in Messenger Calls and Solutions

Intelligence services can access call data; use messenger settings and VPN for privacy.

### Ensuring Privacy in Messengers: Vulnerabilities, Risks, and Solutions
* 🕵 Intelligence services can access information about messenger calls, such as **phone numbers, call times, durations, and caller locations**, through netflow logs from home and mobile internet providers.
* 🛡 To protect privacy, enable a special setting in messengers that uses an intermediary proxy server, like WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber, or Signal servers, to **mask the direct IP addresses of the callers**.
* 📱 In WhatsApp, enable "**Protect IP address during a call**" in Privacy > Advanced. In Telegram, disable "**Use Peer-to-Peer Top**" in Privacy Settings. In Signal, enable "**Always relay calls**" in Advanced Settings.
* 🔒 For additional privacy, use VPN or proxy servers that **encrypt traffic**. Recommended options include VPN services or proxies like Shadow SS that offer **traffic encryption**.
* ❌ Avoid using proxies without encryption, such as plain Sox proxies, as they only **hide IP addresses** without **encrypting traffic**.
* 🔒 "First, we need to **disable in all messengers the direct calls from IP address to IP address**, which will definitely add privacy."
* 🔗 "Second, check out my other videos on my channel. I have a lot of **interesting content on anonymity**."
* 🔔 "And third, subscribe to the channel and like the videos, this way you will **support me**."

Hello friends. We all know that ordinary phone calls in mobile communication have long ceased to be private, and services know when, with whom, and what we talked about on the phone. That's why many have switched to messengers precisely because of privacy and confidentiality. I don't want to upset you, but intelligence services know when and with whom you communicate on messengers; this information is not private for them. This is not clickbait. Watch the video, and I will tell you how they do it. I will explain the vulnerability of messengers and how to protect your information and privacy so that intelligence services cannot access this information. Watch the video until the end. It's not about profanity. Subscribe to the channel. Like the video. An important clarification: we are specifically looking at global surveillance of everyone and not considering targeted requests. Because in the case of receiving them on WhatsApp, WhatsApp provides information to intelligence services, and there is nothing to discuss here.

They ask him a question, how do calls work in messengers? For example, we take the phone number 123, let's say it belongs to us, and the phone number 321, let's say it belongs to our wife. In technical terms, how does a call happen? When we connect to the internet, we get an IP address, for example, this IP address is 111, and the wife, respectively, gets IP address 2222. Communication is established between these two IP addresses, a direct exchange of data from one IP address to another, and we hear all of this in the form of a call. Whether it's a video call or a voice call, there is no difference. What is the vulnerability of this protocol? The vulnerability lies in the fact that we make a call directly from one IP address to another, meaning the provider of the home internet, which is our wife's. Where we are at home and using our mobile internet, for example, from MTS. They will see that there is a direct exchange of data, and consequently, both providers of home internet and mobile internet will know that data exchange is taking place.

Mobile internet providers or home internet providers have information about their IP address, meaning the IP address from which the call is made. If it is a mobile internet provider, they know the phone number, the owner's data, and the address of the base station from which the call is made. This could be somewhere in the market, a store, on the street, or on the highway. On the other hand, a home internet provider knows the contact phone number used for the connection, the actual address where the connection was made, and the data on which the contract is based, such as the full name, passport, and so on. Both home and mobile internet providers constantly store this information in an incomplete form, but they can see it in the so-called netflow logs. These logs are transmitted to a common database accessible to special services. Thanks to this database, which is systematically filled with our data, special services have access to it.

Special services know the following information about us from data from home internet providers and mobile internet providers: first, the phone numbers we called and who called us, the date, time, and duration of the calls, as well as the location of both subscribers during the call. Second, the data of the owners of both numbers: their last name, first name, patronymic, and home addresses. Quite unpleasantly, this information is stored for a long time, so they can know who you talked to, how long you talked, and even from where the call was made, even more than half a year ago. Moving on, how can we protect our privacy? What do we need to do? Let's remember how a call is made in the usual way with standard messenger settings, meaning a direct connection between two IP addresses 1 and 2.2. However, if we enable a special setting in the messenger, look at how the call will be made next.

There will not be a direct connection between IP address 111 and 222, but there will be an intermediary called a proxy server of messengers like WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber, or Signal, depending on the messenger you use. In this way, after enabling this setting, all that intelligence agencies can find out is that we were simply talking to someone, but they won't know with whom specifically because instead of subscriber B, there will be just the IP address of this intermediary, which is the server of WhatsApp or Telegram, and so on. Now let's see how to enable this setting: in WhatsApp, go to Privacy, choose Advanced, and check the box Protect IP address during a call. In Telegram, go to Privacy Settings and uncheck Use Peer-to-Peer Top. In Signal, go to Advanced Settings and check Always relay calls. What else can and should be done?

If you need privacy, use VPN or proxy servers, but they must have the ability to encrypt our traffic. I recommend using VPN or some proxy servers like Shadow SS that allow us to additionally encrypt our traffic. I do not recommend using proxies without encryption, such as just Sox, because they hide our IP address but do not encrypt our traffic. So, either VPN or some proxies with encryption. Let's summarize. First, we need to disable in all messengers the direct calls from IP address to IP address, which will definitely add privacy. Second, check out my other videos on my channel. I have a lot of interesting content on anonymity. And third, subscribe to the channel and like the videos, this way you will support me.

WhatsApp и Telegram не приватен. Как сохранить приватность? Что нужно сделать прямо сейчас?

Tor Zireael

The Lack of Privacy in Mobile Communication

Phone calls are no longer private, leading to a shift towards messengers for better confidentiality.

However, intelligence services can still access information from messengers, making global surveillance a concern.

The vulnerability lies in the direct exchange of data between IP addresses during calls, allowing both home and mobile internet providers to see the communication.

Information Stored by Internet Providers and its Implications

Internet providers, both mobile and home, store a significant amount of data including IP addresses, phone numbers, and call details, which is accessible to special services.

This data includes the phone numbers called, call duration, and the location of the callers, raising concerns about privacy.

To protect privacy, enabling special settings in a messenger for making calls can potentially enhance security and confidentiality.

Protecting Your IP Address When Using Messaging Apps

Using a proxy server can prevent direct connections between IP addresses 111 and 222 when using messaging apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber, or Signal.

Enabling the "Protect IP address during a call" setting in WhatsApp, unchecking "Use Peer-to-Peer" in Telegram, and checking "Always relay calls" in Signal can help enhance IP address protection.

It's also important to stay updated on any additional security features offered by these messaging platforms.

Ensuring Traffic Encryption for Privacy: VPNs and Proxy Servers

Using VPN or proxy servers like Shadow SS can provide the necessary traffic encryption for privacy, while avoiding proxies without encryption, such as Sox.

Disabling direct calls from IP address to IP address in messengers is crucial for adding privacy.

Checking out the creator's other videos for more content on anonymity and offering support by subscribing to the channel and liking the videos is also recommended.