Ruling comes after company refuses to allow Russian security services to access user dataA Moscow court has banned the popular Telegram messaging app, in a landmark decision that moves Russia a step closer towards Chinese-style internet censorship. The court ruling on Friday came after Telegram refused to give Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) encryption keys that would grant access to user messaging data. Telegram, which has more than 200 million users worldwide, is especially popular with Russia’s elite. “There are a lot of messaging services, Telegram is a very convenient one, we have been using it to communicate with journalists,” Peskov said last week. Alexei Venediktov, the well-connected head of Russia’s popular Echo of Moscow radio station, said the decision to block Telegram was an attempt by Russia’s law enforcement to stop technological progress rather than adapt to it.

Source: The Guardian April 13, 2018 11:22 UTC