Pro-Palestinian protesters are using an encrypted messaging app that was central to organizing campus protests to coordinate at the Democratic National Convention.

Telegram, an encrypted messaging app produced by two Russian programmers, is exceedingly popular worldwide, recently reaching 1 billion downloads. One of its key features is its end-to-end encryption, making it ideal for military and dissident coordination — among its many users are Hezbollah and Hamas. It has proven its effectiveness during anti-Israel campus protests since Oct. 7, allowing protesters to coordinate. The app is being used once again for pro-Palestinian protests at the DNC.