Telegram backs off against authorities

Telegram, the encrypted email application, has announced a change in its privacy policy. In the event of a request from a government in connection with a terrorism case, the courier may provide certain information to the authorities. With the exception of the Russian authorities.


Only fools do not change their minds and the leaders of the encrypted Telegram app are not those people. The company yesterday announced a change in its privacy policy, so far particularly draconian. Telegram promised to never deliver information from its users to anyone, not even the authorities. In the new version of its privacy policy, the encrypted mail service now recognizes an exception to this principle: it will agree to provide information to the authorities in cases related to terrorist cases.

But even in this case, the data that Telegram can deliver to the authorities remains meager. Encryption implemented on Telegram does not allow service operators to access communications between two users. These are encrypted and Telegram does not hold the keys necessary for decryption. As stated in the privacy policy, the service will be able to deliver the IP address and phone number of people, but little more.Telegram said the case has not yet occurred, but if this should happen, users would be informed as part of their semi-annual transparency report.

And again, it depends on who makes the request. Telegram says it will not respond to requests from the Russian authorities, with whom the application has been in conflict for many months. The founder of Telegram has already had many conflicts with the Russian authorities around the creation of its social network vKontakte, and things are not improved with the launch of Telegram: the application has recently been officially banned in the Russian territory