Transmitting information about the enemy to the military using Telegram bots can put you at risk if your device ends up in enemy hands. Using any chatbot in Telegram leaves digital traces on your device. If you clear the chat history, cache, and media, and remove the bot from your search history, you will only eliminate surface-level traces of having used the bot.
It is impossible to guarantee that all traces will be fully removed.
Therefore, before using chatbots to transmit data, assess your situation and the risks involved. If you are in temporarily occupied territory, your device could end up in enemy hands at any moment.
If you understand all the risks and still want to use chatbots to transmit data:
- For safe interaction with chatbots, use a separate smartphone and phone number not linked to your main accounts. A backup phone, when not in use, must always be kept turned off.
- Register an email address and a Telegram account on a separate number containing no personal data, using a fictitious name. This separates sensitive information and reduces the risk of identification in the event of a data leak or device inspection. Do not link this account to your real life — do not add acquaintances, use real photos or contacts, or connect it to your main profiles.
- Keep the account isolated from your main digital environment: do not log into it from a personal device, do not sync contacts, and do not grant access to your location. Avoid replicating your usual behavior patterns — communication style, subscriptions, or activity that could identify you.
- To make the account look realistic and avoid raising suspicion, maintain basic activity: a minimally filled profile, a neutral description, and moderate online behavior.
- Use such an account as a temporary tool and, if necessary, delete or fully wipe it quickly.
- Set a password for the application and enable Face ID/Touch ID. iPhone > Telegram > Settings > Privacy and Security > Passcode & Face ID Android > Press the menu button in the upper left corner of your screen > Settings > Privacy and Security > Passcode Lock > Enable Passcode > Choose passcode > Press “Confirm”
- Use secret chats for confidential communication. iPhone and Android > Telegram > Tap the users icon > more > Start Secret Chat
- Enable automatic deletion of messages. iPhone and Android > Telegram > Settings > Privacy and Security > Auto-Delete Timer > Choose time period
- Set maximum profile privacy (who sees the number, photo, status, etc.). iPhone and Android > Telegram > Settings > Privacy and Security > Privacy
- If necessary, use a proxy for additional connection protection. iPhone and Android > Telegram > Settings > Data and Storage > Proxy
- Enable self-destruction of media before sending. iPhone and Android > Telegram > Tap the “Attach” icon in the lower right corner > Select image > Tap the timer > Choose time period > Tap “Send”
- Regularly delete chats and message history. iPhone and Android > Telegram > Chats > Press and hold the chat > Delete > Check the box to delete it for the other person as well
- Set automatic account deletion in case of inactivity, or delete it manually if necessary. iPhone and Android > Telegram > Settings > Privacy and Security > If Away For > Choose time period
After Using Chatbots to Transmit Information About the Enemy – сover your traces:
- If you sent a photo or video to the bot, delete it from your phone — including from the trash.
- Mute notifications from the bot: press and hold the chat with the bot and tap Mute.
- When you used the bot, delete it from chats.
For IOS: hold the chat → select “Delete” → “Clear chat history”. The chat will become empty, but will still not disappear. Therefore, then press “Edit” in the upper left corner of the chats menu → select the chat → press “Delete” in the lower right corner.
For Android: hold the chat → in the upper right corner select ⋮ → “Clear history”. The chat will become empty, but will still not disappear. Therefore, then hold the chat again → press the trash icon above → confirm “Delete chat”.
Do not block the bot. During an inspection, occupying forces may check the blocked list in your account settings — and find it there. It is not possible to remove a bot from the blocked list!
To make sure of this, go to the “Settings” section of the profile – “Privacy and security” – “Blocked users”. Here you can see all users and all chatbots that you have ever blocked.
Clear cache: “Settings” → “Data and storage” → “Storage usage” → “Clear cache”. You can also set up automatic deletion of media in personal chats. Cache exists in every app on your phone and can also be cleared manually in your device settings.
Remove any mention of the chatbot from the search bar and "Recent" section in Telegram. Tap the search bar — you will see a list of all channels and bots you have visited. Press and hold the bot you want to remove and select Remove from Recent in the pop-up menu. To clear the entire list, tap Clear on the right side above the first chat in the list.
Key principle: keep your personal and "working" digital environments separate and leave as little data as possible — this significantly reduces your risk.
