MOSCOW — Pavel Durov, the founder of the Telegram messaging app, stated Tuesday that the Russian authorities had opened a criminal investigation against him on prices of “aiding terrorism.”
Durov, who was born and started his profession in Russia, accused Moscow of fabricating pretexts to limit entry by Russians to the Telegram service as a part of an try and “suppress the proper to privateness and free speech.”
“A tragic spectacle of a state afraid of its personal folks,” Durov wrote on social media.
Russian media shops had begun circulating unconfirmed reviews earlier within the day {that a} criminal investigation had been opened against Durov by Russia’s Federal Safety Service, or FSB.
It comes two weeks after Russia’s communications watchdog, Roskomnadzor, stated it was proscribing the Telegram app, accusing the corporate of refusing to abide by Russian regulation.
The transfer triggered a uncommon wave of public outcry, together with widespread criticism from pro-Kremlin army bloggers, who warned that Telegram was broadly utilized by Russian troops combating in Ukraine and proscribing its service would derail army communications.
Nonetheless, Russian officers have continued to painting Telegram as a safety danger. Digital growth minister Maksud Shadayev advised Russian information wire Interfax that international intelligence businesses might be studying messages despatched by means of Telegram by Russian troopers on the entrance line.
When requested concerning the case, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated Tuesday that the FSB had gathered data on a “massive variety of violations” by Telegram, in addition to content material that would “probably pose a hazard to our nation.” He stated Telegram had been unwilling to cooperate with the authorities.
“Primarily based on this, the related businesses are taking measures they deem applicable,” Peskov stated.
Beneath President Vladimir Putin, the authorities have engaged in multipronged efforts to rein within the web. They’ve adopted restrictive legal guidelines and banned web sites and platforms that don’t comply, and targeted on bettering expertise to observe and manipulate on-line site visitors.
Russian authorities have focused YouTube and imposed restrictions on standard messaging platforms, blocking Sign and Viber and banning on-line calls on WhatsApp and Telegram. In December, restrictions had been imposed on Apple’s FaceTime video calling service.
Whereas it’s nonetheless potential to bypass a few of the restrictions through the use of digital personal community providers, lots of them are routinely blocked too.
On the identical time, Russia actively promotes the “nationwide” messaging app often called MAX, which critics say might be used for surveillance. The platform — touted by builders and officers as a one-stop store for messaging, on-line authorities providers, making funds and extra — overtly declares it can share consumer knowledge with authorities upon request. Consultants additionally say it doesn’t use end-to-end encryption.
Durov has confronted criminal investigations elsewhere. In 2024, he was arrested in Paris over allegations that his platform was getting used for illicit exercise, together with drug trafficking and the distribution of kid sexual abuse pictures.
This text was generated from an automatic information company feed with out modifications to textual content.
Source link
#Russia #opens #criminal #investigation #Telegram #app #founder #Pavel #Durov #Mint
