Signal to add optional registration without phone number through one-time payment

Signal is developing an optional registration method that allows users to create an account without providing a phone number. This new feature, known as 'Signal Login', was discovered in Signal’s Android source code and responds to frequent user requests for phone number free registration.

While this upgrade offers increased account privacy, Signal Login will require a one-time payment instead of a recurring subscription. Pricing has not been finalized, and the amounts referenced in current source code are examples. Users who choose not to pay for Signal Login will still be able to use the existing phone number based signup process. The introduction of this fee is designed to limit spam and automated account creation, which have prevented phone number free signups until now. Signal CTO Ehren Kret previously indicated that adding a cost was necessary to discourage abuse of the registration process.

Signal will continue offering its existing phone number privacy controls, including options that limit account discoverability. The nonprofit has not announced a launch date or final price, but references to Signal Login in the registration components of its source code suggest the feature is actively being developed and could arrive in the near future.