Is it possible to redirect WhatsApp and Signal calls to a landline?
I've been thinking about this for a bit but I couldn't come up with anything.
The idea is that you have a VOIP number and some self-hosted VOIP infrastructure connected to a landline phone. WhatsApp, Signal and voice traffic from other apps would be redirected to this landline phone instead of your mobile phone.
Is there a way to do this? How do I get started?
Reasoning: I can now keep my phone isolated, wrapped in a thick towel and inside a solid box to prevent it from eavesdropping on me inside my own house.
Please do not respond with messages like "you're too paranoid", it doesn't help.
Thanks
18 replies
You could use a computer with a headset as a linked device, that's the closest I can think of.
Hmm, do you think there's a way to have the ringing happen on the speakers but the conversation on the headphones? TBH if this is possible then I don't need to use such complicated measures
If you're on the pc you can just switch audio output to your speakers, then run to your pc and switch audio output to headphones to proceed with the call
You can bridge it through e.g. Twilio but it will add latency that makes the voice calls less pleasant. You're better off with a phone that has a microphone kill switch, or physically remove the microphones (hack the hardware) and only use an external mic. Or power down the phone altogether.
Interesting concept. There's https://github.com/AsamK/signal-cli which specifically allows piping messages from Signal to another process, but at a glance its not clear if it allows for that with audio calls.
Haven't had landlines in a long time but when I did I remember looking at cordless phones with Bluetooth to connect to your cell phone so you can answer both phones (cell phone and landline) on the handset. Beyond that look into pbx.
This would be a cool gimmick
If you want to maximize paranoia, don't forwarded end to end encrypted communication over unencrypted systems
Yes I realised that after I posted, sorry. Do you have any other ideas I could look at? I just want to keep my phone locked up and away from me when I'm in the house but still be able to talk to family over the chat apps they use (they are not very technically literate so Simplex is out of the question; it took a lot of convincing to get some of them in Signal)
use a house phone with only signal installed on it.
use a different phone user with only signal installed on it (you can use molly to share the same account on multiple phones)
It's still the same problem no? If I can't DeGoogle a phone then I don't know what and how much data is being captured. Honestly I really liked the idea to just keep the desktop app running on a separate PC with headphones plugged in. I'm wondering if USB landline converters exist so I can have it ring when a call comes but then I can speak like when I'm wearing headphones.
Thank you for the suggestion though
Why can't you degoogle a phone?
You can use GrapheneOS, or lineageOS... or a iphone, or a chinese phone...
Since its your home network you can block all network access except to signal for the phone.
You can use some voip service to have regular phone calls go to your pc.
Not to argue about the privacy issue, but aren't there better options than a towel? Get a phone without camera? Get one of those phones with physical switches for sensors? Get graphene OS and don't install anything but signal? I feel the towel wrapping is not the best solution for your privacy issue.
The issue is cost. Purchasing a pixel just to keep it lying around for one app is a bit too expensive. I'll just use my of phone instead
Yep. Look at something like the PinePhone. It has hardware switches that can disable camera, microphone and all types of wireless communication, respectively. And no need to degoogle, since it’s not googled in the first place (runs either Manjaro, PostmarketOS, Mobian or whatever you put on there yourself). Only drawbacks: it’s not really cheap for the specs and a little hard to find these days. But there are probably comparable devices out there.
I'm not putting it in a Faraday cage, just preventing it from listening and seeing anything. I'll place it closer to my WAP if it needs it
Might be easiest to just drill out the mic and camera, and use a usb headset for calls. I also suggest specific threat modelling and learning about opsec as that may help you feel more in control. After that, please look after your mental well-being. We all should.
Why not use the clients for Pc?