Signal is seeing a huge influx of users who are switching from WhatsApp, as users want to protest against WhatsApp’s new privacy policies, a move that also had a significant boost when Tesla boss Elon Musk tweeted “Use Signal ”. But if you’ve just started using the privacy-focused messaging app, there are a few resources you want to know about.
Read on for the best tips and tricks for Signal that will help you make the most of the app.
1. Set up a screen lock
Signal has a screen lock function, so even if your phone is unlocked, you need to be able to access your phone via a PIN or biometric phone lock to open the Signal app. Therefore, even if you give your phone to someone for any reason, that person will not be able to see your messages.
To do this, go to Settings> Privacy> Enable screen lock.
2. Disable association signal notifications
Since many people are now joining Signal, your phone will start dripping like crazy if many of your contacts are on board. The good news is that it is very easy to turn off these notifications, so you can just use the app, without being bombarded by unnecessary messages.
To do this, go to Settings> Notifications> Disable contact association signal.
The signal allows you to automatically blur faces in uploaded photos.
Photo credit: screenshot / signal
3. Blur faces in photos
If you’re concerned about privacy, you don’t always want to send pictures with people’s faces, unless you have their consent. The workaround is to manually edit the photos, which is tedious and time-consuming. However, Signal covers you – the option to send photos includes an automatic face blur tool and you can also manually slide additional parts of the screen to blur – great if you need to send an ID, for example.
To do this, Touch the + sign> Touch an image to send> Touch the Blur button (which looks like a circle with black and white tiles inside) > Toggle blurred faces. You can draw anywhere on the screen with your finger to blur additional information.
4. Send a disappearance message
WhatsApp recently received disappearance messages, but Signal has had this feature for a long time. These are messages that have a time limit and are deleted so that your conversations remain private.
To do this, open a chat and enter the menu by by tapping the person’s name> Toggle messages that disappear> Slide the stopwatch to set how long the message will last.
5. Define how many times an attachment can be viewed
A chat that disappears sets a time limit for a message, but the other person must be able to access it during that time. If you set it up to something like 5 seconds, the other person may not see anything unless they are actively chatting with you. Attachment limits are a slightly different way to send messages more privately. With this setting, you can upload a photo or video that can only be viewed once and, once closed, the attachment disappears. Therefore, it can be viewed days or weeks after submission, but only once.
How to set up single send messages.
Photo credit: screenshot / signal
To do this, tap the + sign> Touch an image to send> Touch the Infinity icon in the bottom left corner. That’s all you need to do to send the attachment normally.