Talk about an unexpected surprise: popular messaging app Telegram has been banned across two regions in Russia for fear of enemies of the state using it to plan attacks. Telegram has long been heralded for its commitment to user privacy while also being accused of being Russian spyware.
The ban has been imposed across the Russian regions of Dagestan and Chechnya as authorities reported a rise in extremism. An example of a concerning instance from 2023 was provided as proof of the app being used for malicious purposes.
This isn’t the first time that Telegram has gotten into trouble in Russia but the ban across Dagestan and Chechnya looks like it will stay for a long time. Authorities are urging residents to switch to alternatives and saying that Telegram may or may not be unbanned in the future.
A Telegram chat interface. | Image credit — PhoneArena
This is far from the first time that Telegram has made the news in the last few months. Telegram founder Pavel Durov was arrested in France last year on charges of facilitating organized crime on the platform. These charges alleged that due to Telegram’s stance on user privacy and anonymity the platform was responsible for whatever took place in its servers.
Eventually, after so many years of resisting it, Telegram caved to legal pressure. Durov stated that the app would now provide users’ IP addresses and phone numbers to authorities upon request. Telegram had often been blamed for breeding radical cells in the past.
Funnily enough some people have always held the belief that Telegram is Russian spyware. With it now being blocked in regions of its own home country that belief becomes all the more humorous in my opinion. I’ve also always maintained that Telegram is no more to blame for nefarious activities than Discord or other platforms that offer end to end encryption.
Some people view Telegram as part of the dark side of the internet: an app that only elite hackers or criminals use. But Telegram is a massively popular platform with all sorts of chat rooms and servers. I personally have met some amazing people on Telegram and I hope the situation in Russia can be handled sooner rather than later.
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Abdullah loves smartphones, Virtual Reality, and audio gear. Though he covers a wide range of news his favorite is always when he gets to talk about the newest VR venture or when Apple sets the industry ablaze with another phenomenal release.
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