Telegram Privacy Checklist: 9 Settings to Review

Use this checklist to make deliberate Telegram privacy choices instead of copying one “maximum privacy” preset. Start with account access, then review what other people can discover or infer, and finish by choosing the right chat type for sensitive conversations. Each row explains a trade-off and points to Telegram’s own documentation.

Official sources reviewed: 28 July 2026

How to use the checklist

Work from top to bottom on every device where you use Telegram. Choose settings for your threat model and communication needs, record any exceptions you add, and repeat the review after a major app update, phone-number change or unexpected login alert.

Privacy and security settings matrix

Menu labels below are typical labels documented by Telegram. They can differ by operating system, app version or translation; use Settings search or the nearest Privacy and Security entry when the wording has changed.

1.Connected devices and sessions

Typical menu label*: Settings → Devices (or Privacy and Security → Active Sessions)
What to review: Open the device list, check locations and recent activity, and terminate a lost or unrecognized session.
Decision and trade-off: Removing a session signs that device out. Keep a trusted existing session while recovering a lost phone because it can help you secure the account.
Telegram source: Telegram FAQ: stolen phone and active sessions

2.Two-Step Verification

Typical menu label*: Settings → Privacy and Security → Two-Step Verification
What to review: Add a separate login password and, if you use recovery email, protect that mailbox with its own strong authentication.
Decision and trade-off: The extra password reduces reliance on the phone number alone. Losing both the password and recovery route can make account access harder.
Telegram source: Telegram FAQ: Two-Step Verification

3.Local app passcode

Typical menu label*: Settings → Privacy and Security → Passcode Lock
What to review: Set an app passcode on shared or physically exposed devices and confirm the auto-lock behavior suits how you use the device.
Decision and trade-off: This protects the local app from casual physical access; it is separate from the Two-Step Verification password used for new logins.
Telegram source: Telegram FAQ: physical access and app passcodes

4.Passkeys

Typical menu label*: Settings → Privacy and Security → Passkeys (where available)
What to review: Check whether a passkey is configured, where it is stored, and the creation and last-used details shown for each passkey.
Decision and trade-off: A passkey can replace an SMS code for login on supported clients, but Telegram still advises keeping an active phone number you control.
Telegram source: Telegram FAQ: passkeys

5.Phone-number visibility and discovery

Typical menu label*: Settings → Privacy and Security → Phone Number
What to review: Review both who can see your number and, when shown, who can find you by it; inspect any Always or Never exceptions.
Decision and trade-off: More restrictive discovery can make it harder for new contacts to find you. People who already know and saved your number may still see it.
Telegram source: Telegram FAQ: who can see my phone number

6.Last Seen and Online

Typical menu label*: Settings → Privacy and Security → Last Seen and Online
What to review: Choose the audience and exceptions, then remember that messaging, reading a private message or typing can briefly reveal online activity.
Decision and trade-off: If you stop sharing an exact Last Seen time with someone, Telegram generally limits the detail you can see about their activity too.
Telegram source: Telegram FAQ: Last Seen and Online

7.Calls and peer-to-peer connections

Typical menu label*: Settings → Privacy and Security → Calls → Peer-to-Peer
What to review: Review who may call you and whether peer-to-peer calls should be allowed for everyone, contacts or nobody.
Decision and trade-off: Disabling peer-to-peer relays calls through Telegram servers to avoid revealing your IP address to the other party, but quality may decrease.
Telegram source: Telegram translations: peer-to-peer call setting

8.Synced contacts

Typical menu label*: Settings → Privacy and Security → Data Settings
What to review: Check whether contact syncing matches your needs and use Telegram’s controls if you want to stop syncing or delete synced contacts.
Decision and trade-off: Removing or disabling synced contacts reduces address-book data stored for contact discovery, but can affect names and new-contact notifications.
Telegram source: Telegram Privacy Policy: phone number and contacts

9.Cloud Chat or Secret Chat

Typical menu label*: Contact profile → menu → Start Secret Chat (supported mobile clients)
What to review: For a sensitive one-to-one conversation, verify whether you need a device-specific Secret Chat rather than a regular Cloud Chat.
Decision and trade-off: Secret Chats add end-to-end encryption and are device-specific; they do not sync through Telegram Cloud and are lost from your device when you log out.
Telegram source: Telegram FAQ: Secret Chats

#	Check	Typical menu label*	What to review	Decision and trade-off	Telegram source
1	Connected devices and sessions	Settings → Devices (or Privacy and Security → Active Sessions)	Open the device list, check locations and recent activity, and terminate a lost or unrecognized session.	Removing a session signs that device out. Keep a trusted existing session while recovering a lost phone because it can help you secure the account.	Telegram FAQ: stolen phone and active sessions
2	Two-Step Verification	Settings → Privacy and Security → Two-Step Verification	Add a separate login password and, if you use recovery email, protect that mailbox with its own strong authentication.	The extra password reduces reliance on the phone number alone. Losing both the password and recovery route can make account access harder.	Telegram FAQ: Two-Step Verification
3	Local app passcode	Settings → Privacy and Security → Passcode Lock	Set an app passcode on shared or physically exposed devices and confirm the auto-lock behavior suits how you use the device.	This protects the local app from casual physical access; it is separate from the Two-Step Verification password used for new logins.	Telegram FAQ: physical access and app passcodes
4	Passkeys	Settings → Privacy and Security → Passkeys (where available)	Check whether a passkey is configured, where it is stored, and the creation and last-used details shown for each passkey.	A passkey can replace an SMS code for login on supported clients, but Telegram still advises keeping an active phone number you control.	Telegram FAQ: passkeys
5	Phone-number visibility and discovery	Settings → Privacy and Security → Phone Number	Review both who can see your number and, when shown, who can find you by it; inspect any Always or Never exceptions.	More restrictive discovery can make it harder for new contacts to find you. People who already know and saved your number may still see it.	Telegram FAQ: who can see my phone number
6	Last Seen and Online	Settings → Privacy and Security → Last Seen and Online	Choose the audience and exceptions, then remember that messaging, reading a private message or typing can briefly reveal online activity.	If you stop sharing an exact Last Seen time with someone, Telegram generally limits the detail you can see about their activity too.	Telegram FAQ: Last Seen and Online
7	Calls and peer-to-peer connections	Settings → Privacy and Security → Calls → Peer-to-Peer	Review who may call you and whether peer-to-peer calls should be allowed for everyone, contacts or nobody.	Disabling peer-to-peer relays calls through Telegram servers to avoid revealing your IP address to the other party, but quality may decrease.	Telegram translations: peer-to-peer call setting
8	Synced contacts	Settings → Privacy and Security → Data Settings	Check whether contact syncing matches your needs and use Telegram’s controls if you want to stop syncing or delete synced contacts.	Removing or disabling synced contacts reduces address-book data stored for contact discovery, but can affect names and new-contact notifications.	Telegram Privacy Policy: phone number and contacts
9	Cloud Chat or Secret Chat	Contact profile → menu → Start Secret Chat (supported mobile clients)	For a sensitive one-to-one conversation, verify whether you need a device-specific Secret Chat rather than a regular Cloud Chat.	Secret Chats add end-to-end encryption and are device-specific; they do not sync through Telegram Cloud and are lost from your device when you log out.	Telegram FAQ: Secret Chats

Official Telegram sources

The matrix is limited to claims supported by these first-party Telegram pages. Telegram notes that its FAQ can lag behind product changes, which is why menu paths are explicitly version-sensitive.