If I use a chat to certify photos taken with the Telegram app, will they have the same validity as if they had been taken with the GoCertius app?

Taking photos or videos using the GoCertius app will provide you with greater certainty when capturing these photos or videos. This is because the GoCertius app takes control of the camera and seamlessly and instantly certifies the image and uploads the digital file.

If you take photos using Telegram, the camera is controlled by Telegram. Therefore, we cannot guarantee that the captured image is as reliable because the photo is taken in the context of the Telegram app having absolute control over the means of capture on your device’s camera. Nor can we guarantee that the image has not been previously edited by the participant who shares it in the certified chat.

Therefore, if you are going to record evidence in the form of a photo or video, we recommend that you take it using the GoCertius app.

Does this mean that photos from a certified chat are not valid? No, but you do need to bear all these considerations in mind when capturing images. If a participant posts an image in a certified chat, you would be able to prove that that participant shared that image with you, but you couldn't prove that the image had not been tampered with before being uploaded to the chat.