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Signal Secure Backups

signal.org

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Re: Signal Secure Backups

#71

Post by bmicraft »

Sesse__ wrote: post #48
poisonborz wrote: post #39

Backing up Signal on Android for free and offline was ~always possible. The app creates a multi GB backup file on the phone memory under the Signal folder that you can just copy out and back on a new phone. The file is encrypted with the passcode and the database can be extracted. https://github.com/bepaald/signalbackup-tools

There are a couple of problems with the existing backup: 1. It is non-incremental. This means you'll need about as much free space on your phone as your Signal database takes, and it may take many hours to make if your database is large (mine is 18GB). I used to wake up to find my phone had not even fully charged because it had been so busy writing Signal backups. 2. Once you have it on disk, how do you get it away f…

Foldersync is a great app

Re: Signal Secure Backups

#73

Post by jemiluv8 »

jwr wrote: post #32

This is so incredibly important! I am very happy to see this, the fact that you could not do a backup on iOS and you would lose everything in case your device dies is the biggest drawback of Signal. I still do not quite understand why I can't have the option to just back things up to iCloud (I do understand the security implications and I'm fine with it), but ANY backup solution is better than "your data is gone, tou…

Feels like a really good way to finally get Signal to start working towards sustainability. I see myself paying just to help this incredible product continue serving its mission

Re: Signal Secure Backups

#74

Post by Sesse__ »

nottorp wrote: post #62
Sesse__ wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any backup that needs manual intervention is no backup.

Thought people are talking about backups without a "cloud" involved. So you'd need to manually connect your phone to something...

What? My phone has a perfectly working 802.11 chipset, which is able to talk to my very own machines that are not in a cloud, no manual connection needed. This is purely a software/ecosystem issue.

Re: Signal Secure Backups

#75

Post by dmesg »

Sesse__ wrote: post #57
nottorp wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Once you have it on disk, how do you get it away from your phone? adb pull no worky? At least for HN readers.

Any backup that needs manual intervention is no backup.

Even automatic backups run at intervals to cause less server load. The article says you absolutely have to write down your restore key too (They say notebook or PW manager).

It may seem obvious now, but I know most people will forget and be puzzled if their phone suffers physical damage. A lot about this has mandatory manual steps.

Re: Signal Secure Backups

#76

Post by brewdad »

evbogue wrote: post #34
elvisloops wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a difference between someone in your chats acting adversarially and Signal supporting/encouraging adversarial behavior as part of the way the app works. If Signal published a change to the protocol that removed forward secrecy, we wouldn't consider it a non-event and say "well anyone could screenshot messages anyway," even though that may be true. They're calling this "secure backups," but in truth it appears…

I'd also wonder where this shared encryption key for message "backups" is stored. If it's available on all of my devices, I suspect it would be available on other devices as well?

The article says it is generated on your device and they don't have a copy. Sounds like a public-private keypair where you are responsible for managing the private key.

Re: Signal Secure Backups

#77

Post by rPlayer6554 »

teiferer wrote: post #69
vigilans wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This BS is why I completely stopped donating to the signal foundation. The messages are mine, not theirs, and yet they refuse to allow me to handle them how I deem fit.

Have you read the article? They are working on it.

Where does it say that?

Re: Signal Secure Backups

#78

Post by ectospheno »

rconti wrote: post #3

Are they still refusing to do anything about their painful 30 day device unlinking policy? If they can support full backups, surely they can accomplish this. https://community.signalusers.org/t/dont-unlink-devices-afte...

Device queues need to expire at some point. At that point you aren’t “linked” anymore. What do you want them to do instead?
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