Privacy and security implications of wi-fi calling

interpretabilis

Graphene supports wi-fi calling. Are there are any privacy or security reasons to enable or disable wi-fi calling?

interpretabilis

Here is an example for why this might be a privacy concern. With wi-fi calling you can receive calls when the phone is only connected to wi-fi and not the cellular network (I just tested this). This means that whenever I am connected to the internet my phone must be establishing some kind of connection to my provider. How else would the call be able to be routed to my phone? So when I have wi-fi calling enabled, my provider knows when I am connected to the internet. Is this true?

Does wi-fi calling respect my VPN settings?

I do not know how wi-fi calling works on a technical level so I do not know how correct this scenario is and what identifying information is sent. Graphene does a good job of educating the user about privacy issues so I feel this should be part of the documentation.

katemason

interpretabilis So when I have wi-fi calling enabled, my provider knows when I am connected to the internet. Is this true?

yes

mythodical

interpretabilis like just about any other internet-based service, WiFi calling would open a two-way communication channel between you and the service. Whether that is a privacy risk is entirely up to you. Generally speaking, you should only use software that you trust.

abcZ

Well, it lets your phone service provider know your public IP address.
And it lets your ISP know what phone company you use.

Is that important information for you to keep private? Up to you.

Now the benefit, of course, is the ability to use your cell service where you might otherwise not be able to use it. Basement or rural areas, locations where cost of roaming is out of this world.