Note: There can be a small change in the interface otherwise the steps are the same for Telegram mobile app (Android and iOS) and the Telegram desktop app. In this article, we are making use of an Android device. Suggested Read: How To Pin A Message Or Chats In Telegram
Hiding Phone Number In Telegram
Selecting Nobody
By default, the Telegram settings are set so that only your Contacts are able to see your phone number and no one else. But there can be many personal reasons to hide the phone number from the people in the contact list too. Keeping this in mind, here are the steps to do that.
1 Hiding Phone Number In Telegram1.1 Selecting Nobody1.2 Adding Exceptions1.3 Selecting Everybody1.4 Adding Exceptions1.5 Selecting My Contacts1.6 Adding Exceptions2 Deleting Synced Contacts3 Wrapping Up
- Launch the Telegram app on your device and tap on the hamburger icon at the top left of the screen.
- Now tap on the Settings option given just below the Invite Friends option. (In the case of an iPhone, the Settings option is available at the bottom right corner.)
- Under the Settings heading, select the Privacy and Security option.
- After that, tap on the Phone Number option available under Privacy.
- Now, under Who Can See My Phone Number? select Nobody and tap on the tick icon.
Adding Exceptions
There might be some people with whom you might not have any problem sharing the phone number. For those near and dear ones, you use the exception feature.
- Tap on the Always Allow option under the Add exceptions heading.
- Select as many users from the contact list as you want and tap on the tick icon. Adding more people to exception or removing the few of the existing ones is also possible with these steps.
- Again tap on the Always Allow, Tap on the three-dots adjacent to the contact added and select Delete to remove the contact.
- For adding more people to the exception, simply tap on the Add Users or Groups and repeat the 2nd step above.
Selecting Everybody
This option is for people who don’t have any problem sharing their phone number with anyone. Not only the people saved in your contact list but any random person reaching your Telegram profile can see your phone number. Simply select the Everybody option and tap on the tick icon to make it work.
Adding Exceptions
The exceptions that we added under Everybody are a bit different from the once we added under Nobody. Here the exceptions added are the people who will not be able to see your phone number.
- Tap on the Never Allow option.
- Select the users to add in the list and tap on the tick icon. For adding or removing more people to the list, again tap on the Never Allow. Next, tap on the three-dots in front of the username and select Delete. For adding more people to the list, tap on Add Users or Groups.
Selecting My Contacts
While using Telegram, this option is by default selected and your number will only be visible to those people whose contact number you have saved in your contact list. But all the people in the contacts are not so well known that you can share your number with them in return.
Adding Exceptions
When we select the My Contacts option, two different exceptions are available, Always Allow and Never Allow. The users added to the Always allow will be able to see your Phone number. While selecting Never Allow, the users added to it will not be able to see the number. The steps to add or remove the users are the same as before.
Deleting Synced Contacts
When your number is selected to be shown only to your contacts then obviously the people in your contact list will be the only one to see it. But after testing, it was seen that even if you delete a particular contact from your phone book, that person will still be able to see your phone number in Telegram when they open up your profile. It happens maybe because that contact is still saved in the Telegram servers. We don’t know how much time Telegram will take to remove it or maybe it never removes. So it’s better to do this job manually, rather than waiting for Telegram to do it for us.
- Tap on the hamburger icon on the top-left.
- Now select the Settings option.
- Under the Settings, select Privacy and Security.
- After that, scroll down a bit and tap on the Delete Synced Contacts under the Contacts.
- Finally, tap on OK. Now any contact that you deleted will only be able to see your Telegram name instead of your number. Suggested Read: How To Set Up Automatic Replies On Telegram
Wrapping Up
Hiding the phone number on your Telegram account makes it even more secure. Alternatively, you can use the app without a phone number. It is best for people who like to use social media platforms anonymously, without getting much notice. There can be a number of other reasons too for hiding the number on Telegram, but whatever be the case, these steps are surely going to work for you.