Can I Register Discord without a Phone Number

Posted on 05/11/24 02:32 pm

Discord is one of the largest chat apps, originally designed for gamers in 2015 by Jason Citron and Stanislav Vishnevskiy. As children of the late 80s and early 90s, the platform’s founders were huge fans of video games, cherishing the connections formed while playing them.

Originally developed by the video game company Hammer & Chisel, Discord began as a multiplayer game. The gaming community wasn’t initially enthusiastic about the release, but users quickly grew attached to its messaging and communication features. Listening to user feedback, the developers decided to focus on these aspects, leading to the Discord we know today.

Since its 2015 launch, Discord has attracted over 250 million users worldwide, with 14 million daily active users. Today, not many of these users are gamers — in fact, only about 20%, as reported. We’ll get back to this later in the article.

Related: “How to get Discord Nitro for free”

Many people love Discord for its high level of anonymity compared to other chat apps like Slack. However, you still need to share your private phone number to register a Discord account. This poses a question: what level of anonymity is possible if the platform requires a phone number, potentially giving access to other user data?

Let’s explore this further. We’ll also discuss how Discord differs from other chat applications and how you can protect your sensitive data using virtual phone numbers from SMSOTPVERIFY to complete phone number verification.

Review and Comparison of Discord

Discord stands out because it allows users to create both channels and separate servers, which can contain numerous channels on various topics. These tools can be either private or public. Thanks to its flexible functionality, Discord is a comfortable platform for building communities, similar to Reddit.

People appreciate Discord not only for its intended anonymity, which we’ll discuss later, but also because it captures elements of the early Internet. While Discord’s anonymous usernames resemble AOL, it’s also reminiscent of Myspace as a cozy place to hang out with friends online and share random content.

Today, Discord’s user base is not limited to gamers. It now serves as a home for all kinds of communities, from comic lovers to those seeking educational and networking opportunities. Unlike Slack, which is often mentioned alongside Discord, Discord is less commonly used for work communication, though it still has that capability.

Discord — Benefits & Features

For a basic user, Discord offers:

Voice and text chats
Video conferencing
File sharing (free up to 3 MB)
Link sharing in both public and private channels
Screen sharing with or without sound
Streamer mode to hide private data during streaming

Premium mode, available via the in-app Nitro service, includes upgraded features such as larger upload capacity, animated avatars and emojis, and customizable profile pictures.

To help you decide whether you want to create a Discord account, let’s consider the app’s advantages and disadvantages.

Benefits

High-quality sound and video: Discord uses the Opus codec, which includes built-in noise and echo suppression, as well as automatic gain control for high-quality sound. For stable video transmission, it uses the VP8 codec.
Simple interface: The interface allows users to create private servers and channels, add or remove members, and assign special roles with ease.
Useful bots: Discord has an extensive catalog of official bots, but users can also create their own to solve specific problems. Server admins often use bots for tasks like role management, player statistics, and music content searching.

Downsides

Frequent failures when transferring large files: Discord’s multimedia storage and transfer capabilities are limited.
No video recording feature: This limitation can enhance security, but it may restrict certain types of communication.

Anonymity and Privacy on Discord

When it comes to anonymity and privacy, many users see Discord as one of the safest and most anonymous chat platforms, despite the lack of end-to-end encryption. However, casual Discord users on platforms like YouTube suggest that the app is safe as long as you use it with friends you know in real life or navigate it cautiously. Additionally, voice chat offers the best option for private conversations on Discord.

Like other platforms with large user bases, Discord tracks basic usage statistics. To review your data, go to your Discord settings, open the “Privacy & Safety” section, and find the option to receive an email with all the information Discord has about you. This includes friends, settings, username, email, transaction history, every message sent (including direct messages), the servers you’re in, how you navigate the app, what games you play, etc.

In this sense, Discord is not entirely private, as it may share parts of your data with third parties.

Is it Safe to Use and Register on Discord?

Ultimately, it’s your choice. While a truly private platform would have end-to-end encryption (such as Signal, Telegram, or Element), there’s no need to give up Discord altogether. It still offers numerous useful and even unique features for communication.

Just be cautious not to fall for scams, especially links from unknown users.

To increase your data safety, you don’t have to provide your private phone number to register on Discord. Instead, you can use a disposable phone number, which works like a cellular phone and can receive SMS for account verification.

How to Register for Discord Without a Phone Number

SMSOTPVERIFY is a platform that provides virtual number services for SMS verification. It’s one of the leading companies for providing temporary numbers for online registrations.

Using a Virtual Phone Number for Discord

Here’s how to get a virtual phone number for Discord registration:

Log in to SMSOTPVERIFY. If it’s your first time, create an account.
In the left sidebar, select “Top up my balance” and make a deposit using one of the available payment methods.
Return to the home page, select your mobile operator’s country and the “Discord” service, and click “Buy.”
Copy the virtual number from the “History” section and use it to register your Discord account.
When Discord sends a confirmation code, return to SMSOTPVERIFY and click “Receive SMS” next to your number.
You’ll find the verification code there. Use it to complete your Discord registration.

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