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TON Adds Option to Send Cryptocurrency on Telegram

May 8, 2022

The Open Network (TON) foundation has announced that users will now be able to send crypto payments on its Telegram two years after the platform abandoned its blockchain effort.

According to The Verge, Telegram shut down its cryptocurrency operation after it had received unbearable pressure from the United States’ Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

TON announced in a Twitter post that Telegram now supports Toncoin transactions with no fees attached.

TON is a project that was developed by Telegram CEO Pavel Durov and his brother Nikolai in 2018. A year after the project was launched the SEC ordered Telegram to halt its sales of Gram, the token linked to the TON blockchain, claiming that it had failed to register the $1.7-billion in sales collected as part of its pre-Initial Coin Offering (ICO). Telegram, however, abandoned the TON foundation in 2020.

After the WhatsApp competitor dropped its previous blockchain operation it managed to bring forth a new one and rebranded it from Gram to Toncoin.

“I’m proud that the technology we created is alive and evolving… TON is still years ahead of everything else in the blockchain realm,” Durov said last December, according to The Verge.

The TON project also managed to raise $1-billion in donations earlier in April.

Currently, Telegram allows merchants to create bots that enable their customers to checkout on the platform. Merchant bots can send specially formatted invoice messages to users, groups, or channels, according to Techweez.

The app can send invoice messages that feature a “Pay” button, along with a picture and description of the product that you are paying for. Tapping on the button opens a special payment interface within the app. The interface allows users to choose a tip amount (if allowed by the merchant) and enter additional details like shipping info, phone number, or email address.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

How to Move Chats from WhatsApp to Telegram

January 30, 2021

With the mass dumping of WhatApp by millions of subscribers, rival platforms such as Telegram and Signal are coming up with ways to make migration as seamless as possible, moreso, they are upgrading their functionalities to appeal to more subscribers. The founder of Telegrams said earlier last week that WhatsApp is behind the “Largest Digital Migration in History”. According to the Telegram’s founder, Pavel Durov, Facebook’s recent attempt to update WhatsApp’s privacy policy has left many users concerned and searching for a more ‘secure’ messaging platform, like Telegram. Telegram has launched a new feature that allows users to import their WhatsApp individual and group chat history – including videos and documents – to Telegram.

Telegram’s founder, Pavel Durov, — Telegram’s founder, Pavel Durov

For subscribers using the Apple iOS platforms, to move a chat from WhatsApp on iOS, open the Contact Info or Group Info page in WhatsApp, tap Export Chat, then choose Telegram in the Share menu. WhatsApp for iOS also lets you export chats directly from the chat list. Swipe left on a chat, then choose ‘…’ > Export Chat.

For those using Android platforms, what needs be done is to open a WhatsApp chat, tap ⋮ > More > Export Chat, then choose Telegram in the Share menu. Messages will be imported into the current day but will also include their original timestamps. In a recent statement, Durov revealed that a number of political leaders and numerous public organizations rely on Telegram to combat misinformation and spread awareness about important issues in their societies.

He goes on to say that “unlike other networks, Telegram doesn’t use nontransparent algorithms to decide whether a subscriber will see content they subscribed to or not. As a result, Telegram channels are the only direct way for opinion leaders to reliably connect with their audiences.” “By removing the manipulative algorithms that have become synonymous with 2010s technology platforms, Telegram channels restore transparency and integrity to public “one-to-many” communication.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

How Facebook’s Faux-pas With WhatsApp Shot Telegram to Over 500 Million User Milestone

January 18, 2021

…how to make your Telegram secure

While Facebook has been on overdrive trying to calm frayed nerves over the mass exodus from its messaging app WhatsApp to over competing apps, one major competitor that has gained from that exodus is Telegram. The rise in demand for other messaging apps is attributed to Facebook’s recent move to update WhatsApp’s terms of service and privacy policy – leaving many WhatsApp users concerned and searching for a more secure messaging platform, like Telegram.

Telegram which has been in existence since 2013 which also provides end-to-end encrypted video calling, VoIP, file sharing and several other features has been overshadowed by the popularity of WhatsApp for years until now. Though Telegram provides end-to-end encrypted calls and optional end-to-end encrypted “secret” chats between two online users on smartphone clients, its cloud chats use client-server/server-client encryption and it was the 8th most downloaded app worldwide in 2020.

However, due to the mass exodus that hit WhatsApp, 25 million people downloaded Telegram last week alone with 38% of them from Asia, 27% from Europe, 21% from Latin America, and 8% from MENA,” says Telegram Founder, Pavel Durov.

“People no longer want to exchange their privacy for free services. They no longer want to be held hostage by tech monopolies that seem to think they can get away with anything as long as their apps have a critical mass of users.”

For those who migrated to Telegrams, here are tips to make sure Telegram is as secure as possible:

Pick a username and use it instead of your actual name or associated phone number when chatting with others.

Enable 2FA for your account. If someone tries to take control over your account, hijacking a voice call or a text message with a temporary verification code won’t be enough. The attacker will still have to deal with your password. If it’s strong and unique, the account takeover will become a significant problem. This feature is available in “Settings” – “Privacy and Security” – “Two-step Verification.”

When chatting with others, consider using the “Secret Chats” feature. It means your account and chats will have better encryption, where each message is encrypted with two keys available only for you and your recipient.

Use a VPN connection when chatting or calling others. It is essential to bring an extra layer of security on your side.

Regularly review the “Active Sessions” option available in “Settings” – “Privacy and Security”. It helps to find out if your Telegram account is enabled on any other device besides yours. If you find anything unknown or suspicious, terminate those sessions and change your “Two-step verification” password.

To maximise your privacy integrity, when signing up on Telegram, use a virtual number instead of your real mobile number. Make sure it is not a disposable virtual number; otherwise, someone can still hijack your account. Your virtual number is the one you own and is not connected to your mobile carrier.

Make sure your information is private to the point comfortable to you. There are several settings that you can play up or down in terms of exposure to the world around by accessing “Settings” and then “Privacy and Security”.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry