Telegram is Offering A Free Premium Subscription, But Here’s the Catch!

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Telegram has launched its opt-in Peer-to-Peer Login program on its Android app that allows the messaging app to use your phone number to send OTP(One Time Passwords) to other users.

When you agree to be part of this program, Telegram will use your number and it will send up to 150 texts with OTP to other users trying to log in to the app. Telegram then gifts you a one-month free premium subscription.

This means the SMS texts sent by Telegram will be billed to you as they won’t pay the carrier chargers.

Some of the benefits of having a premium subscription are you get to use paid features for free like:

-4GB file uploads

-increased download speeds

-new premium icon

-zero ads

-voice and video message transcriptions

-animated profile pictures

-the ability to follow up to 1000 Channels, create up to 20 chat folders with 200 chats each

-add a fourth account to any Telegram app.

-pin up to 10 chats and save up 10 favourite stickers

-write a longer bio and add a link as well

Agreeing to this program means that your phone number will be visible to the recipient of the OTP code. Telegram says that you shouldn’t engage in messaging with the recipient but there’s no way they’ll enforce that.

Telegram claims that this P2PL program will make receiving the OTP codes via SMS more reliable in select areas but privacy enthusiasts are calling this a privacy nightmare, especially with how Telegram boasts as a privacy-focussed messaging app.

This is quite a security risk exposing your number to strangers when Signal, another privacy messaging is trying to get rid of numbers and switch to usernames to talk to other Signal users. Usernames make it easy to connect with other users without sharing your phone number.

We’ve written before that if you really care about digital privacy, Signal is a better option instead of Telegram as an encrypted messaging platform when switching from WhatsApp.