Media vs signalling
Signalling tells participants how to begin a call. Media is the actual audio and video. A call can have working signalling and still fail to establish a media path.
ICE, STUN and TURN
ICE gathers possible network paths. STUN helps a browser discover its public-facing address. TURN relays traffic when a direct route cannot be established.
Where encryption sits
WebRTC media is protected by the browser's secure media transport. Application signalling can add authentication and encryption around call setup.
Privacy limits
Calling does not make IP or network metadata disappear. The correct claim is protected communication, not universal anonymity.
Debugging checklist
- Confirm microphone/camera permissions.
- Test a different network.
- Verify STUN/TURN configuration.
- Check signalling authentication and expiry.