If You’re Using Signal Like This, You’re Doing It Wrong

Signal’s become the go to name people drop when they want to sound private.

But slapping Signal on your phone doesn’t mean you’re safe. It’s not magic. It’s a tool and like any tool, it can be misused, misunderstood, or flat out weaponized against you if you’re sloppy.

Most people using Signal think they’re “off grid.” In reality, they’re leaving a trail wide enough to drive a subpoena through.

Let’s fix that.

The Illusion of Safety

Signal encrypts messages end to end. That’s good. But it’s not the full story.

Your usage patterns still reveal a lot. Who you message. When. How often. Even what size the messages are. The metadata (the who, when, where) can be just as damning as the content.

And the number you register with? That’s the first leak.

Common Signal Mistakes That Burn You

You’re probably doing one of these. Don’t beat yourself up. Just stop doing it.

1. Using Your Real Number

This is the cardinal sin.

Signal requires a phone number to register. Most people just punch in their real one because it’s easy. But your number is a direct identifier. It’s tied to your name, your billing info, your location history.

If you’re trying to stay anonymous or reduce your digital footprint, using your real number defeats the whole point.

Fix it:

• Get a prepaid SIM in cash. No ID. No contract.
• Use a burner number app like JMP.chat, Hushed, or MySudo.
• Never link it to accounts with your real name.

If you didn’t get the number quietly, your Signal account isn’t private.

2. Not Locking the App

You leave Signal wide open on your phone. One swipe and anyone can see your messages.

Even worse, if your phone gets seized, law enforcement can often open apps that aren’t password protected, even if the phone is encrypted.

Fix it:

• Enable Screen Lock in Signal settings.
• Use a strong device passcode.
• Turn on disappearing messages by default.

Encrypt your phone. Always.

3. Backing Up Your Messages

Signal doesn’t back up to the cloud, which is good, but if you clone your phone or use third party tools to back up app data, those messages can leak.

Local backups are plaintext unless you’ve explicitly encrypted them. That means your “secure” messages are sitting in a readable file on your phone or laptop.

Fix it:

• Don’t back up Signal messages. Accept the loss if you lose the device.
• Use encrypted local storage if you absolutely must archive.
• Clear chat history regularly.

Don’t treat Signal like Gmail. It’s not a permanent record. It’s a burner inbox.

4. Ignoring Contact Discovery Leaks

Signal has a feature that scans your contacts to find who else uses the app. Sounds helpful. It’s also a giant metadata trap.

If you sync contacts, you’re broadcasting your entire phonebook to Signal’s servers (yes, hashed, but still a risk).

Fix it:

• Disable contact discovery.
• Manually add contacts by number or QR code.
• Keep a separate device or profile for Signal use only.

Compartmentalize. That’s how you stay clean.

5. Not Understanding Message Requests

When a new contact messages you, you get a “message request.” Most people just hit accept.

But message requests can reveal a lot:

• Your Signal number is active.
• Your profile name or picture (if you have one) is shown.
• Even your profile status can leak context.

Fix it:

• Set a random or blank profile name and image.
• Don’t respond unless you trust the number.
• Keep message requests buried in settings, not front and center.

Stay uninteresting. Stay forgettable.

Bonus Mistake: Treating Signal Like It’s Anonymous

Signal isn’t built for anonymity. It’s built for secure messaging.

That’s a huge difference.

If you’re needing to operate pseudonymously (activism, whistleblowing, research, whatever) Signal won’t cut it. You need layered opsec. You need clean devices.

Signal is what you use with friends and family. It provides secure messaging and calls while being easy enough that your grandma can still use it.

Signal is just one spoke. Not the whole wheel.

Personal Confession

I used Signal with just one or two people for over a year. The rest of my friends and family still insisted on calling me on my actual phone number regardless of how many times I asked them not to.

I finally had enough and sent a text to everyone on my contact list: “Starting Monday I will no longer be checking this number and responses will be delayed. If you would like to get in touch with me please contact me on Signal. It’s free and easy, my contact name is X”

Most of the people did so without complaint (they know what I do for a living), but I did receive some push back. A handful kept sending me SMS messages which I would only respond to with a link to signal. It took some time but eventually everyone got the message that I would not communicate with them over insecure lines.

Lesson learned. Clawed it back. You can too.

Checklist: How to Use Signal Like It’s Meant to Be Used

• Register with a burner number (cash SIM, not VoIP tied to ID)
• Enable app lock and disappearing messages
• Disable contact discovery and sync
• Don’t back up messages, treat them as disposable
• Strip profile data. Stay blank.

Check out the hardened version of Signal Molly, a lot of these settings are the default.

Final Thought

Signal isn’t your shield. It’s just a blade. You have to know how to wield it or you’ll end up cutting yourself.

Use the right tool for the job.

-GHOST
Written by GHOST, creator of the Untraceable Digital Dissident project.

This is part of the Untraceable Digital Dissident series — tactical privacy for creators and rebels.
Explore more privacy tactics at untraceabledigitaldissident.com.