Telegram now allows users to create an anonymous account without a SIM card, whose account data will be stored in the blockchain network TON.
The developers added to Telegram a sign-up function with a higher level of anonymity without being linked to a cell phone number. Account data will be recorded on the TON blockchain, but all messages will still be stored on Telegram’s servers. Blockchain-powered anonymous numbers can be purchased on the Fragment platform. Anonymous numbers range in price from $20 to ~$57,000 in Toncoin.
The messenger team described the innovation as the beginning of a “new era of privacy.” The announcement noted that it was already possible to hide your phone number from unfamiliar contacts in Telegram by changing the privacy settings. With the new update, privacy options expand. Besides blockchain-powered anonymous addresses, an auto-delete function appeared to delete messages in any personal chats after a certain period of time.
Recall that Pavel Durov in late August announced plans to “add a little bit of Web 3.0” to Telegram. In early October, the blockchain platform Fragment was launched to sell account IDs through “NFT-like smart contracts.” At the beginning of November, Telegram announced its plans to develop a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange (DEX) and a non-custodial wallet for storing digital assets.
