Signal and Telegram Growth in China

Concerns regarding WhatsApp’s data privacy practices have prompted a significant shift in user preference, with millions in Western countries turning to Signal and Telegram. These two encryption-focused applications are also experiencing a modest increase in adoption within China, a nation where WeChat is the dominant communication platform and the government maintains strict control over online activity.

The surge in users to alternative encrypted platforms began after WhatsApp issued a notification to its users detailing its data-sharing relationship with its parent company, Facebook. Telegram reported gaining 25 million new users between January 10th and 13th, as announced on its official channel. Simultaneously, Signal rose to the top of the download charts on both the App Store and Google Play Store across numerous countries, as reported by TechCrunch.

This migration was further encouraged when Elon Musk, on January 7th, encouraged his 40 million Twitter followers to download Signal, likely boosting interest in the end-to-end encrypted messaging service.

While the growth of Telegram and Signal in China is not as substantial as their gains in regions where WhatsApp is widely used, it demonstrates that alternatives to WeChat are still accessible within the country to some extent.

Data from Sensor Tower indicates that Signal saw 9,000 new downloads from the China App Store between January 8th and 12th, representing a 500% increase compared to the January 3rd-7th period. Telegram recorded 17,000 downloads during the same timeframe, a 6% rise. In contrast, WhatsApp’s growth remained stagnant, with 10,000 downloads in both periods.

Sensor Tower’s estimates show Telegram has accumulated approximately 2.7 million total installs on China’s App Store, while Signal has reached 458,000 downloads and WhatsApp has been downloaded 9.5 million times.

The availability of Telegram, Signal, and WhatsApp in China may be unexpected. However, China’s censorship policies can be inconsistent and unpredictable. According to Apple Censorship, a censorship monitoring site, all major Western messaging applications remain available on the China App Store.

The situation is more complex for Android users. Due to restrictions on Google services in China, Android users typically rely on app stores operated by local companies such as Tencent and Baidu. Neither Telegram nor Signal is currently offered on these third-party Android stores, but users who employ tools to circumvent China’s Great Firewall, like a virtual private network (VPN), can access Google Play and install these encrypted messengers.

Successfully utilizing these apps presents another hurdle. Beijing’s censorship mechanisms treat different chat applications differently. Some, such as Signal, function without the need for a VPN. However, registering for Signal requires phone number verification, and Chinese phone numbers are linked to individual identities. Users have reported that WhatsApp occasionally functions in China, albeit with slow loading times. Facebook is entirely inaccessible without a VPN.

“Certain websites and applications may operate without interference until their user base reaches a level that attracts the attention of authorities, at which point blocking or disruption may occur,” explained Charlie Smith, the anonymous head of Great Fire, an organization that monitors the Chinese internet and operates Apple Censorship.

“It’s possible that Signal did not have a significant user base in China prior to the recent migration from WhatsApp. If that has changed in the past week, authorities may be considering restrictions for Signal,” Smith added.

Under a 2017 cybersecurity law, companies operating within China are legally required to store their data locally and provide information to authorities for security inspections. Apple, for example, collaborates with a local cloud provider to store the data of its Chinese users.

This requirement raises questions about the nature of interactions between Signal, Telegram, and other foreign apps with Chinese authorities. Signal has stated that it never provided data to Hong Kong police and had no data to provide when concerns arose regarding Beijing’s increased control over the former British colony.

According to Smith, the primary challenges for apps like Signal in China will likely stem from Apple, which faces ongoing scrutiny from investors and activists for complying with Chinese authorities.

In recent years, Apple has intensified its app enforcement in China, focusing on services that provide Chinese users with access to uncensored information, including VPN providers, RSS feed readers, and podcast applications. Apple has also removed tens of thousands of unlicensed games in recent quarters after a prolonged period.

“Apple has a pattern of proactively censoring apps that it anticipates authorities would seek to censor,” Smith noted. “Should Apple decide to remove Signal from China, either independently or in response to a request from the authorities, Apple customers in China would be left without any secure messaging alternatives.”