Land of the free Russia is not.. An interview on the chaos that has followed and what happens next. By Aaron Mak April 25, 20184:15 PM On April 16, the Russian telecommunications regulator Roskomnadzor began blocking Telegram, an encrypted messaging app created by Russian entrepreneur Pavel Durov that has more than 200 million users worldwide. The app’s developers had previously refused to provide the country’s Federal Security Service with encryption keys that would give the government access to users’ communications, and a Russian court ultimately handed down a decision to ban Telegram. Roskomnadzor has cast a very wide net in its suppression, going so far as to block IP addresses owned by Google and Amazon that are associated with Telegram services. Millions of other IP addresses for local companies and individuals that reportedly have no relation to Telegram have also been blocked. In order to better understand the Telegram ban against the wider backdrop of internet freedom in Russia, I spoke Tuesday with Tanya Lokot, an assistant professor at Dublin City University who studies digital media and internet freedom in Russia. Below is a transcript of the interview, which has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity. Aaron Mak: What role did Telegram play in Russia prior to the ban? Tanya Lokot: It’s not the most popular social media platform—it doesn’t have nearly as many users as Facebook or WhatsApp. But it was a messenger developed by a team and founder that had a history with Russia, and in building the app, they made the point that this was something made for Russia with the situation in the country in mind. Many people saw it truly as an alternative space for debate and discourse. It’s not just individual users talking to each other anymore. By adding the channel functionality and chats, they really created this space where there are a lot of political debates happening. There is a lot of news-related content that is being shared and discussed. And so I do think it had this role as an elite and political space, which many people also saw as a protected space because Telegram insists on the fact that all the communications are end-to-end encrypted. People saw this as a safe space to express themselves and debate political and social issues. What kind of activity would the Russian government want to monitor or stymie on Telegram? There are several fairly popular accounts that share political news and commentary. Some of these accounts actually claim to be insiders within the Kremlin. They leak behind-the-scenes stuff or provide commentary on things that happen within the government. There are also a lot of different channels and chats that focus specifically on very narrow issues. I, by virtue of doing the work that I do, follow a few channels that focus on information security. They share recommendations and discuss cases, like when somebody gets arrested and prosecuted for doing something online. They have that space to debate those things as well and offer valuable tips on how to make your internet experience more secure. These people may or may not be persecuted on the wider Russian internet, but they found that Telegram for them is a more focused way to get to their target audience. Some of the major independent Russian media outlets have their own Telegram channels, which they use to share and push out news they create. It’s a diverse space and there’s room for different kind of debates. It is more politicized than (Russian social media network) Vkontakte or Facebook, perhaps because people feel more secure on it. ... ctd: https://slate.com/technology/2018/04/russian-internet-in-chaos-because-of-telegram-app-ban.html
This is interesting. I wonder what Russia's reasoning was for banning this popular App. The source in the OP is entirely one sided. I mean Facebook uses these same encryption keys so is Russia going to block it too? Seems a tad heavy handed I believe personally that social media platforms hold far too much power over our lives. Despite being conservative towards anything that uses the dirty word of regulation towards any business I think these social media platforms are frankly out of control and need to be reined in. Just look at the hotmess of Zuckerberg testifying before Congress recently. God I sound like an old fogey.
https://m.newsru.com/russia/27apr2018/rskmndzrstrikesagain.html Russia already blocked Facebook and Twitter.
what a disaster, Russian authorities playing whack-a-mole with their internet, be interesting to see what's leftover and exactly how pissed off Russians will be at the end of this mess I don't believe this is about the St Petersburg bombing at all, that's just an excuse. Pavel Durov understands very well he is protecting Putin's opposition and holding many people's lives in his hands.
