On X, encryption lives in Chat, its newer direct-messaging feature. X's help page says a Chat is end-to-end encrypted only when both people have registered for Chat and the recipient follows you, has messaged you before, or has accepted a Chat from you. Message requests stay unencrypted until accepted, metadata is not encrypted, and X says the design is not forward secure. For a DM that is encrypted regardless, encrypt the text in HushHush on your phone and paste the ciphertext into a normal DM.
What X can and cannot see
X's help page for encrypted direct messages now opens its "About Chat" page: Chat is where X's encryption lives. When you first enter Chat, X creates a key pair for you and asks for a four-digit PIN. The PIN "never leaves the device", but the private key it protects is "securely stored on X's infrastructure" so that it "can be recovered from any device if the user knows that PIN". X splits that key across three servers it runs itself and locks it after 20 wrong guesses.
Not every DM is a Chat. X lists the conditions: both people have registered for Chat, and the recipient "follows or subscribes to the sender, has sent a message to sender previously, or has accepted an encrypted Chat message from the sender before", or both belong to the same Premium Business or Organization. If the other person has not registered, "the message will be sent unencrypted", marked by an unlock icon next to the send button. Message requests "are unencrypted until the user accepts the request", and your tier sets how many you can send in a day: 7 free, 35 on Premium, 75 on Premium Plus, 500 on Premium Business. Everything else is an ordinary DM that X stores and can read.
Inside an encrypted Chat, X says the content is encrypted, links and reactions included. It is equally clear about what is not: "while the message content itself is encrypted, associated metadata (e.g., recipient, creation time, etc.) is not." If a Premium Plus member adds @Grok to a conversation, "X and SpaceXAI (to provide the feature) will get access to all the messages in that conversation". Reporting a message sends its contents to X. And on forward secrecy X is direct: "If the private key of a registered device is compromised, an attacker would be able to decrypt all encrypted Chat messages that were sent and received by that device. In other words, this implementation is not 'forward secure.'"
| What | X today | With HushHush |
|---|---|---|
| The words you type | Encrypted inside an eligible Chat; otherwise visible to X | Ciphertext only |
| Who you message, and when | Yes: X says metadata is not encrypted | Still yes |
| A message request, before it is accepted | Unencrypted | Ciphertext only |
| Past messages, if a device key leaks | Readable: X says Chat is not forward secure | Forward secrecy on automatic Telegram, Matrix or email chats; pasted DMs use your pairing key |
| With @Grok added, or a message reported | Content goes to X | X only ever holds ciphertext |
| Your private key | Stored on X's servers, behind a four-digit PIN | Only on your phone |
Who this affects
A journalist whose source is on X and nowhere else. Someone messaging an account that has never set up Chat, or has a closed inbox. Anyone who would rather their key did not live on X's servers behind four digits, or who does not want yesterday's messages to depend on today's device staying clean. And anyone who cannot tell whether this particular message went out encrypted.
How HushHush helps
HushHush encrypts the text on your phone before it goes into X. Type the message in HushHush and tap send; it is encrypted and copied as ciphertext, which you paste into a normal DM, encrypted Chat or not. X carries only ciphertext. The other person copies it out of the DM and taps Paste in their HushHush to read it. Both of you need HushHush, and you pair once, in person, by scanning each other's QR code. It works even if your contact has never registered for Chat, and inside a message request. Your keys stay on your two phones: no PIN on a server, no account with us.
Pair once, in person
Open HushHush, add a contact, and scan the QR code on the other phone. No account, no phone number, no server.
Type it in HushHush
Write the message and tap send. It is encrypted on your phone and copied as ciphertext.
Paste it into an X DM
X carries the ciphertext. Your contact pastes it into HushHush to read it. Or connect Telegram, Matrix or email inside HushHush and it is sent and decrypted automatically.
What HushHush does not do. It does not hide who you message on X, when, or how often; X still sees both accounts, the time and the length of the ciphertext, and can tell it is HushHush. Both people need HushHush and one in-person pairing. It protects the text, not X's own voice notes or calls. A pasted DM is protected by your pairing key, not by forward secrecy; that comes with automatic Telegram, Matrix or email chats in HushHush.
Frequently asked questions
Are X DMs end-to-end encrypted?
Do you need X Premium to send encrypted DMs?
Can X read my encrypted Chat messages?
What does X mean when it says Chat is not forward secure?
How do I send an encrypted message on X to someone without Chat?
Encrypt it before X sees it.
HushHush is on the App Store and Google Play. Pair in person, then send in any app.
Related
Sources
- About Chat, X Help Center (the "encrypted direct messages" help address now opens this page), accessed 7 October 2026.
- Send encrypted direct messages with the X Chat API, X Developer Platform, accessed 7 October 2026.