The instruction “FM2025-61:1” by the Swedish Armed Forces, published on February 11, 2025, states that Signal should be used to defend against interception of calls and messages via the telephone network and to make it more difficult to spoof telephone numbers.

UK’s backdoor push vs. Sweden’s & CISA’s encryption endorsement

This development comes at a time when global governments are taking conflicting stances on encryption: Some officials, like the Swedish Armed Forces and CISA, advocate for the widespread use of end-to-end encryption, while others, like the UK, are demanding backdoors that would fundamentally weaken security.

Recently, the UK has pressured Apple to compromise its encryption standards, leading to the tech giant disabling its Advanced Protection feature for cloud backups for UK users, which removes the option to encrypt this data end-to-end for Apple users in the UK.

Contrary to that, the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has issued its loudest endorsement of any US agency in favor of encryption this January, advising individuals and organizations to use Signal and similar secure communication tools with built-in end-to-end encryption. CISA’s endorsement was an answer to the revelation that Chinese state-backed hackers successfully infiltrated major US telecommunications networks, enabling them to snoop on not-encrypted communications of American citizens and officials. This emphasized the necessity of encrypted emails, chat messages and calls to protect sensitive data from foreign espionage.

Swedish Armed Forces’ decision sends a powerful message

The Swedish Armed Forces’ endorsement of Signal sends a powerful message: secure, encrypted communication is not just a convenience but a necessity for national security.

Their official document FM2025-61:1 mandates the use of Signal for all non-classified communication, citing the app’s independent security audits, widespread adoption among allies, and its open-source nature. It states:

“The intelligence threat to the Armed Forces is high and interception of phone calls and messages are known methods of threat actors. […] Use an end-to-end encrypted application for all calls and messages to counterparts within and outside the Armed Forces who have the option to use an end-to-end encrypted application."

"Designated application: The Armed Forces use Signal as an end-to-end encrypted application."

"The main reason for choosing Signal is that the application has a wide distribution among authorities, industry, partners, allies and other societal actors. A contributing reason is that Signal has undergone several independent external security audits, significant findings from which have been addressed. The security in Signal is therefore assumed to be sufficient to make it difficult to intercept calls and messages.”

Why phone numbers can’t be trusted

The problem with standard telephony is that phone numbers can easily be spoofed. The Swedish Armed Forces warns that if a foreign power like Russia knows the phone number of Sweden’s Prime Minister, it could redirect all calls to that number through its own operators. All calls to the Prime Minister would then go through a Russian phone provider so that the Russians could listen in on all calls made to and from this number. The reason fo that is that traditional phone calls are highly vulnerable to interception, as caller ID can be easily spoofed, and a foreign power with control over their country’s telecommunications infrastructure can reroute calls through its networks or even to its intelligence services. Phone calls made via Signal, however, can not be intercepted in such a way.

With the Swedish Armed Forces, there is now the second important official organization in just two months recommending strong encryption and favoring it over less-secure tools that do not secure calls and messages end-to-end.

This sends an important message, particularly given the constant threats to encryption – like the UK’s recent demand that Apple should remove its cloud encryption for all Apple users. The more officials understand the power of end-to-end encryption, and the need for it for state security, the more likely they will uphold this valuable security measure for all citizens.

Tuta’s commitment to privacy and encryption

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At Tuta, we firmly stand behind the right to private communication. The Swedish Armed Forces’ endorsement of Signal underlines what we have been saying since the launch of Tuta: Only end-to-end encryption can keep our data safe.

We at Tuta fight for your right to privacy by providing secure, end-to-end encrypted email and calendar services that protect you from illegal mass surveillance and other cyber threats. We applaud the endorsement of Signal by the Swedish Armed Forces as a step in the right direction and hope that this will lead to a general awakening among politicians: They must understand that strong encryption is essential for personal privacy and national security.

As a provider of quantum-secure encrypted emaila, we at Tuta will continue to fight for our users’ right to privacy. We urge policymakers to follow the example of CISA and the Swedish Armed Forces to support strong end-to-end encryption rather than trying to weaken it. Our online communication is increasingly at risk, and strong encryption remains one of the last lines of defense against cyber threats, surveillance, and state-sponsored attacks.

Let’s fight for privacy together

We encourage everyone to take a stand for privacy. Use encrypted services like Signal for calls and messages and Tuta for secure email. Join our efforts in advocating against policies that seek to weaken encryption, and support legislation that protects digital privacy.

The Swedish Armed Forces have set a precedent - let’s make sure the world hears this message and follows suit!

Privacy is a basic human right. Encryption is the tool that protects it. Let’s defend both.