Durov highlights Telegram Secret Chats after Signal security controversy

Telegram founder Pavel Durov commented on reports that the FBI accessed deleted Signal messages through iOS push notifications, pointing to Telegram’s Secret Chats as a more secure alternative.

The discussion follows a case where deleted Signal messages were reportedly recovered from iOS notification data. According to reports, incoming messages were removed from the app but remained stored in the system’s notification database. While Signal allows users to hide message previews, the setting was apparently not enabled in the reported case.

"Another proof that Telegram’s Secret Chats are the most secure way to communicate. The FBI got access to deleted messages in US gov-funded app Signal just by checking the notifications data. On Telegram, Secret Chats never show message content in push notifications, so, unlike Signal and other supposedly secure apps, we don’t have this risk." — explained the Telegram founder.

Durov noted that users cannot know whether their contacts have disabled notification previews, which is why Telegram’s Secret Chat architecture avoids message previews entirely.

"Obviously, this hurts usability, that’s why Telegram has two types of chats: Secret and Cloud."

According to Durov, apps that try to combine maximum security and convenience in one chat type often make compromises. He cited examples including WhatsApp backups and Signal notifications.

"But no app has been able to beat our Cloud Chats in usability and our Secret Chats in security. Their try to mix the two and get neither".

Earlier, Pavel Durov called WhatsApp’s encryption “the biggest consumer fraud in history,” claiming it misleads billions of users. He also spoke in detail about the spread of “crazy narratives” against Telegram: