"Peer-to-peer" shows up in privacy claims constantly and gets explained rarely. Here's what it actually means and why it matters when you're on camera with a stranger.
The two ways a video call can work
| Type | How it works | Server access |
|---|---|---|
| Server-relayed | Your video travels to the company's server first, then to the other person | Server can access, record, or store the stream |
| Peer-to-peer (P2P) | Your browser connects directly to the other person's browser | Server only handles the initial handshake — nothing in the call itself |
Vidibro uses peer-to-peer, built on WebRTC — the same open standard behind most modern video calling.
What the signaling server does (and doesn't do)
Two browsers can't find each other with no help. The signaling server:
- →Matches you with another waiting user
- →Helps both browsers exchange the technical details needed to open a direct connection
- →Stops there — once the connection is open, it doesn't see, store, or relay your video, audio, or messages
Why this is a genuinely different privacy model
- →No video or audio "at rest" anywhere — it never existed on a server, it was only ever live and in transit between two browsers
- →That's a structural property of how the connection works, not a policy promise about what a company chooses not to do
The honest asterisk: restrictive networks
Some firewalls and NAT configurations (common on corporate or mobile networks) block direct WebRTC connections. In that case:
- →A relay server may forward the encrypted stream between browsers
- →WebRTC encrypts media in transit by default (SRTP), so the relay forwards ciphertext it can't meaningfully inspect
- →"Peer-to-peer" describes the normal path, not an absolute guarantee for every network configuration
What it doesn't protect
P2P protects the transport of your call — where the data travels. It doesn't prevent the other person from recording their own screen. No chat platform can. That's a real limit, not something P2P claims to solve.
Every call on Vidibro — video, voice, or text — runs on this same model.