Telegram (application)

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Telegram

Telegram Site Type Chat Application Launch Date August 14, 2013 Status Active Product Line product Platform Android, iOS, Windows, Mac, Linux Website telegram.org

Telegram is an open source encrypted messaging app, and currently the fifth most used messenger type app in the world with over 500 million users . It can be accessed from Windows, iOS, Android, Linux, and from most web browsers. The associated code with these clients is all open source Telegram is famous for their secret chats, which are end-to-end encrypted, meaning that no intermediary, including Telegram itself, can access user chat logs. Due to this feature, telegram has gained adoption among privacy conscious individuals due to its better privacy protections compared to competitors such as WhatsApp . Still, Telegram is not without it's own controversies. A common complaint is that chats are not end to end encrypted by default and as such, Telegram's servers some chat data from users

History

Telegram was developed by Paul and Nikolai Durov and was first launched on August 14, 2013 . It was initially started as a research project for during the pair's tenure as founders of VK, Russia's largest social network before their ousting by pro-Kremlin investors . The Durov's made Telegram as a response to Edward Snowden's leaking of the NSA's spy programs on the internet. Telegram was described as a privacy centric company where profit was not a priority. In April 2018, Telegram was banned in Russia, but due it's open source nature, the ban was ineffective. In 2020, Telegram was unbanned in Russia. Due to its decentralized nature, Telegram does not disclose the location of their data centers or offices despite being registered as a British/American company. Similarly, co-founder Paul Durov has stated that he and a core team of four engineers develop Telegram from locations around the world, changing locations every 3-4 months.

Features

Messaging

Telegram supports messaging between users, groups of users, and channels, where one person can broadcast announcements one-way to a large audience. Moreover, users can send files up to 2 Gb in size, which is bigger than every other messaging app.. Telegram's group chats support up to 200,000 members per chat, and users can mention users and pin messages . Lastly, Telegram's channels are a one way method of broadcasting messages to large audiences. There is an unlimited amount of subscribers but only admins of the channel are allowed to post. Telegram also supports polls in groups and channels, where a poll creator can ask questions of other members in the channel or group (polls can either be a questionnaire, with no answer, or a quiz, with a correct answer).

Sign-up

Telegram requires a working phone number and the mobile app on either android or iOS. Telegram does not support registration on the desktop app.