Telegram not to consider Russian intelligence requests to provide users’ data

The Telegram messaging service will not consider Russian intelligence agencies’ requests to provide users’ IP-addresses and phone numbers, Telegram founder Pavel Durov said, TASS reported on Tuesday.

“We do not consider any requests from Russian intelligence agencies and our privacy policy has nothing to do with the situation in Russia,” he wrote on Telegram.

According to Durov, Russian intelligence services seek access to all users’ messages and not the data that Telegram is ready to provide in accordance with court rulings.

Telegram earlier introduced changes in its privacy policy, saying that the service was ready to disclose a user’s IP-address and phone number in case there was a court ruling proving that the user was suspected of terrorism.

The move is aimed at ensuring compliance with the European Union’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). According to the messaging service, Telegram’s privacy policy was updated on August 14, 2018.

“Regardless of whether we exercise this right or not, the step should make Telegram less attractive for those who use it as a platform for terrorist propaganda,” Durov said.