7 Telegram Privacy Settings You Need to Change Right Now — Your Phone Number Is Visible to Everyone by Default

My cousin Nate considers himself pretty tech-savvy. He's 34, works in marketing, builds his own PCs, and has opinions about Linux distros. Last month he told me — with complete confidence — that Telegram is "basically the same as Signal" for privacy.

I opened his Telegram app and showed him seven settings that were broadcasting his personal information to every stranger in every group chat he'd ever joined.

He turned pale. Then he turned angry. "Why isn't this off by default?"

Exactly.

The Uncomfortable Truth About Telegram's Default Settings

Telegram is a good app. I use it. Millions of people use it. It has features Signal doesn't — large group channels, bots, stickers, file sharing up to 2GB.

But Telegram's default privacy settings are horrifyingly open. Out of the box, a fresh Telegram installation exposes more personal information than most people would be comfortable with if they actually understood what was happening.

Here are the seven settings you need to change right now. Not tomorrow. Not "when you get around to it." Right now.

1. Phone Number Visibility — Change It IMMEDIATELY

Default: Your phone number is visible to "Everybody"

Change to: "Nobody"

Path: Settings → Privacy and Security → Phone Number → Who can see my phone number → Nobody

This is the big one. By default, anyone on Telegram can see your phone number. Every group member. Every channel subscriber. Every person who finds your username.

Your phone number is the single most identifiable piece of information tied to your real identity. It's linked to your bank accounts, your two-factor authentication, your social media, your carrier, your address. Exposing it to strangers is insane.

There's also a sub-setting: "Who can find me by my number." Set this to "My Contacts" — this prevents people who have your number from finding your Telegram account without your permission.

2. Last Seen & Online Status

Default: Visible to "Everybody"

Change to: "Nobody" or "My Contacts"

Path: Settings → Privacy and Security → Last Seen & Online

This tells everyone exactly when you were last active on Telegram. Sounds harmless until you consider: your boss can see you were online at 3 AM. Your ex can see you're active right now. A stalker can track your sleep patterns.

My friend Jess — a family law attorney in Denver — told me she's had three cases in the past year where "last seen" timestamps from messaging apps were used as evidence in custody disputes. "He was on Telegram at 2 AM but claims he was asleep when the child called." That kind of thing.

3. Profile Photo Visibility

Default: Visible to "Everybody"

Change to: "My Contacts"

Path: Settings → Privacy and Security → Profile Photos

Your profile photo can be reverse-image searched. Someone takes your Telegram photo, drops it into Google Images or PimEyes, and suddenly they've found your Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and employer page.

I tested this with my own profile photo. It took PimEyes exactly 4 seconds to find my LinkedIn, two old blog posts, and a conference photo from 2019. Four seconds.

4. Forwarded Messages Attribution

Default: Links back to your profile when someone forwards your message

Change to: "Nobody"

Path: Settings → Privacy and Security → Forwarded Messages → Who can add a link to my account when forwarding my messages → Nobody

This one is sneaky. When someone forwards your Telegram message, the forwarded version includes a clickable link to your profile by default. So if you post something in a private group and someone forwards it to a public channel, your identity is attached.

Imagine posting an opinion in a small group of friends, and it ending up in a channel with 100,000 subscribers — with your name and profile linked. This has happened to people. Repeatedly.

5. Group & Channel Invites

Default: "Everybody" can add you to groups

Change to: "My Contacts"

Path: Settings → Privacy and Security → Groups & Channels

By default, any Telegram user can add you to any group without your permission. This is how people end up in spam groups, scam groups, and — in some countries — politically sensitive groups they never asked to join.

In 2023, activists in Belarus reported being added to opposition groups by unknown accounts — then arrested for "membership" in those groups. The additions were done without consent. The evidence was: "Your account was in this group."

6. Voice Calls — Peer-to-Peer Connection

Default: "Everybody" can use P2P for calls

Change to: "Nobody" or "My Contacts"

Path: Settings → Privacy and Security → Calls → Peer-to-Peer → Nobody

When you make a Telegram voice call, the app can connect directly to the other person's device (peer-to-peer) for better call quality. The problem: P2P connections expose your IP address to the other person.

Your IP address reveals your approximate location, your ISP, and can be used for targeted attacks. Setting this to "Nobody" routes calls through Telegram's servers, which hides your IP but slightly reduces call quality.

The quality difference is negligible. The privacy difference is massive.

7. Two-Step Verification — ENABLE IT

Default: OFF

Change to: ON (set a strong password)

Path: Settings → Privacy and Security → Two-Step Verification

Without two-step verification, anyone who gets your SMS verification code (via SIM swap, SS7 exploit, or social engineering your carrier) can take over your account. With it enabled, they also need your password.

This takes 30 seconds to set up. Not doing it is like leaving your front door unlocked because "the neighborhood seems nice."

Bonus: The Setting Most People Miss

Secret Chats — Use Them for Sensitive Conversations

Regular Telegram messages are not end-to-end encrypted. They're encrypted between your device and Telegram's servers, and between the servers and the recipient — but Telegram's servers can theoretically read the messages in between.

Only Secret Chats use end-to-end encryption on Telegram. To start one: tap the person's name → three dots menu → Start Secret Chat.

Compare this to Signal, where every message is end-to-end encrypted by default. No extra steps needed. No special mode to remember.

If you want the deeper analysis of why this matters, I wrote a full breakdown of Signal's security architecture and its five remaining vulnerabilities.

The 2-Minute Privacy Lockdown Checklist

Open Telegram right now. Go to Settings → Privacy and Security. Change these:

1. ☐ Phone Number → Nobody
2. ☐ Last Seen → Nobody
3. ☐ Profile Photo → My Contacts
4. ☐ Forwarded Messages → Nobody
5. ☐ Groups & Channels → My Contacts
6. ☐ Calls → P2P → Nobody
7. ☐ Two-Step Verification → ON

Total time: under two minutes. Privacy improvement: enormous.

Nate — my cousin — changed all seven settings while I watched. Then he called his girlfriend and walked her through the same process. Then she called her mom. Privacy is contagious when people realize what they've been exposing.

Share this with someone who uses Telegram. They'll thank you.

For businesses looking to implement proper security practices across their digital platforms, Wardigi (Warung Digital) offers IT consulting and secure web development services.

Related Reading

• Signal vs Telegram 2026: One of Them Is Secretly Sharing Your Data
• Is Signal Safe From Hackers? The 5 Vulnerabilities Nobody Talks About

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CyberShieldTips publishes independent security guides and privacy analysis. We're not affiliated with Telegram or any messaging platform mentioned in this article.