The instant messenger Telegram has rewritten its privacy policy, and Russians are raising their eyebrows at Section 8.3, where the network now says it may disclose users’ IP addresses and phone numbers “to the relevant authorities,” if it “receives a court order [confirming] that you’re a terror suspect.” Telegram says it’s yet to surrender any information on these grounds, but it will record future cases in a “semiannual transparency report.”
Telegram founder Pavel Durov told the news outlet Current Time that the messenger needed a “real privacy policy” to comply with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, which took effect in late May. Responding to concerns in Russia that Telegram might now cooperate with the FSB, Durov wrote in a blog post that “our privacy policy does not concern the situation in Russia,” stating that his company won’t currently consider any data requests from Russian intelligence agencies.
Durov did, however, allow theoretically for the possibility that Telegram might observe its new privacy policy in Russia, should state officials call off their ban and agree to seek only IP addresses and telephone numbers through court orders. “We will continue our fight,” he wrote.
Telegram agrees to share some user data with governments “to fight terrorism”Read More
