I have many comments about Telegram and how not-so-secure it is. Again, it does not have E2EE on desktop.[1] This secret chat is only for 1 on 1 conversations (IIRC), and it is not the default. I cannot comment on their E2EE because they may have changed it by now.

Telegram is fancy, it is a great replacement for WhatsApp, but it cannot replace Element, Conversations/Gajim (XMPP), Briar, Ricochet, or Wire. Please avoid Telegram for actually "secure chats".

I recommend checking out https://secushare.org/comparison. I disagree with "Telegram can be among the least worse [for smartphones]" though. It is Briar. I have also used Briar on desktop, I wonder where that will go.

[1] https://tsf.telegram.org/manuals/e2ee-simple#2-why-are-there...

You’re right to be wary of Signal. Here, Moxie is spot on, though. Everything he’s saying is based on public information. There’s no FUD and nothing new under the sun. Telegram is spyware wrapped in clever marketing and branding.

The issue with Telegram has been brought up many times by many people. It defaults to insecure and is advertised as “encrypted messaging”. It’s a great messaging tool that offers one way to send e2ee chats, but the default is not and group chats aren’t. The comparison to Facebook messenger is apt.