# TURN usage and its implications for privacy

**URL:** <https://forum.jami.net/t/turn-usage-and-its-implications-for-privacy/885>\
**Category:** Security and Privacy\
**Created:** [August 1, 2021, 11:17pm UTC](https://forum.jami.net/t/turn-usage-and-its-implications-for-privacy/885 "2021-08-01T23:17:37Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Privacyman](https://forum.jami.net/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/p/d07c76/32.png) [@Privacyman](https://forum.jami.net/u/Privacyman)\
**Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 11:17pm UTC](https://forum.jami.net/t/turn-usage-and-its-implications-for-privacy/885/1 "2021-08-01T23:17:37Z")

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I have read the official explanations on the website but they haven’t really helped me to understand the matter since I find them too complex for non technical people (unfortunately, the same applies for Stun, UPnP and DHT proxy).

If I understand well enough, the TURN server is necessary in order to deliver messages without the necessity for both communicators to be online at the same moment. With this option I guess Jami isn’t truly P2P anymore. What privacy implications does it imply?  
I would like to know where this server is located, who is running it and what informations does it get about Jami users and their exchanges’ content.

Thank you in advance for your explanations.  
Also it would to be great to improve the website’s explanations with examples and explanations about privacy implications for each complex setting. I would be really interested in a “recommended settings” both for usability and privacy.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![sblin](https://forum.jami.net/user_avatar/forum.jami.net/sblin/32/19_2.png) [@sblin](https://forum.jami.net/u/sblin)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2021, 4:06pm UTC](https://forum.jami.net/t/turn-usage-and-its-implications-for-privacy/885/3 "2021-08-13T16:06:54Z")

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> [@Privacyman](#):
>
> If I understand well enough, the TURN server is necessary in order to deliver messages without the necessity for both communicators to be online at the same moment.

No, this is not why a TURN server is used. A TURN is used to relay packets cf [Traversal Using Relays around NAT - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traversal_Using_Relays_around_NAT) and is used if both sides can’t get through the NAT.

The rest is explained here [Why is Jami truly distributed?](https://jami.net/why-is-jami-truly-distributed/) & [Establishing peer-to-peer connections with Jami](https://jami.net/establishing-peer-to-peer-connections-with-jami/)

> [@Privacyman](#):
>
> I would like to know where this server is located, who is running it and what informations does it get about Jami users and their exchanges’ content.

Depends what you have in the settings. If default, [turn.jami.net](http://turn.jami.net) is ran by Savoir-Faire Linux. For the locations it depends where in the world you are.

It’s just a coturn server and you can run it yourself, cf

> **[Sign in · GitLab](https://git.jami.net/users/sign_in)**
>
> GitLab Enterprise Edition

For the location, cf the whois, The “recommended settings” are the default.