Signal Windows App Now Protects Conversations From Screenshots by Default

The privacy-focused messaging app Signal is adding a new “Screen Security” feature to its Windows app that will hide the content from chat conversations by default in screenshots, including the automatic Recall snapshots on Copilot+ PCs. Recall just started rolling out on Copilot+ PCs, but its announcement a year ago caused a lot of controversy.

Recall is designed to take regular screenshots of what users are doing on Copilot+ PCs to make this information searchable. Microsoft delayed the release of Recall for almost a year to address privacy concerns, and the AI feature is still in “preview.”

Users can still filter out apps and websites from being saved in snapshots, and a Sensitive information filter is also enabled by default to not capture passwords, credit cards, and other types of potentially sensitive information. However, the Signal team believes that this is still not enough to protect users’ privacy.

“Although Microsoft made several adjustments over the past twelve months in response to critical feedback, the revamped version of Recall still places any content that’s displayed within privacy-preserving apps like Signal at risk,” the company emphasized today. “As a result, we are enabling an extra layer of protection by default on Windows 11 in order to help maintain the security of Signal Desktop on that platform even though it introduces some usability trade-offs. Microsoft has simply given us no other option.”

The new screen security feature in the Signal app for Windows will automatically hide its content from all screenshots, including those taken by users on non-Copilot+ PCs. It will work similarly to the system that prevents users from taking screenshots of movies protected with DRMs. Users will still be able to disable Screen security in Signal’s settings, which may be useful for people using accessibility software.

The Signal team is also pushing Microsoft and other platform holders to collectively think about the implications of features like Recall for developers and end-users. “ It’s ultimately up to companies like Microsoft to ensure that their platforms remain a suitable foundation for privacy-preserving applications like Signal. If that ever stops being the case, we’ll have to stop supporting those platforms,” the company said today.