Telegram in Russia

Main article: Telegram Messenger

Audience

2024

More than 61 million Russians use Telegram daily, VKkontakte - 55 million

On July 11, 2024, it became known that the daily audience of Telegram in Russia reached 61 million users, while 55 million Russians visit VKontakte daily. Read more here.

The Ministry of Digital Development estimated the share of Telegram in Russian mobile traffic at 10%

The Ministry of Digital Development of the Russian Federation estimated the share of Telegram in Russian mobile traffic at 10% in February 2024. In comparison with February 2022, the share of the messenger quadrupled.^[1]

2023

Telegram audience in Russia grew by 31.5 million users in 2 years

By October 2023, Telegram's audience in Russia reached 82.3 million users, which is 31.5 million more than two years earlier. This is evidenced by Mediascope data published in December 2023.

44.2 million Russians use the messenger every day. Russia accounts for 27.2% of global Telegram traffic. Telegram ranks 2nd in the ranking of the most popular Android applications in Russia, and 4th in the App Store.

Maria Saikina, chief analyst at RAEK, says that in 2023 Telegram took 5th place among all online resources in terms of average daily coverage. The messenger is actively used both for text communication and for the consumption of media content, and it is the latter factor that most significantly affects the growth of traffic, the expert believes.

And "stories" as part of the media content certainly contributed to this growth, "Saikina added.

In July 2023, Telegram entered the top 3 services with the largest traffic volume in Russia for the first time, losing only VK and, YouTube the "representative" said. To sheetsBeeline According to him, Telegram traffic in the operator's network has been growing since the beginning of 2023 "with pronounced event bursts."

In July [2023], after the launch of stories (the format of "stories"), we recorded an increase in traffic, but whether it is connected with stories or with information consumption, it is impossible to say unequivocally. There was no explosive growth, "Bilaine told the publication.

According to Megafon, in July 2023, YouTube (19.3%), VKontakte (11.1%) and Telegram (8%) entered the top 3 applications in terms of traffic consumption. The operator has been recording Telegram's steady growth since the beginning of the year, a company spokesman added.^[2]

Telegram is used daily by more than 40% of the Russian population

In March 2023, Telegram ranked fifth among Russian Internet resources in terms of daily audience. More than 40% of the population uses it daily, more than 60% at least once a month. This is stated in a study by Mediascope, which was published in May 2023.

According to experts, during 2022 Telegram constantly increased the volume of the audience. A sharp increase in the audience and time spent on the consumption of the site fell on March 2022 under the influence of two events at the same time - the start of a military special operation of the Russian Federation in Ukraine and the blocking of social networks banned in Russia. Another step in the increase occurred in September 2022 when the partial mobilization was announced. The increase occurred in all classroom groups, more noticeably - in the middle and older in age, due to which the platform for the year from the youth itself became universal and similar to other main social networks and instant messengers.

Telegram combines the functions of a messenger and a social network. As of March 2023, about 70% of Telegram users read any channels, not just exchange messages. Almost a quarter of people under the age of 25 use only Telegram and do not use Whatsapp (owned by Meta, which is recognized as an extremist in Russia; its activities are prohibited). Reading channels for young people accounts for a little more than 10% of the use of the service. Middle-aged and older people spend almost half of their time on Telegram reading channels, preferring Whatsapp as the main messenger.

According to the results of the first quarter of 2023, Telegram took the sixth position in the top of the most visited sites on a daily basis in Russia. On average, users spend 39 minutes a day on Telegram, the messenger accounted for 6% of Internet consumption in the Russian Federation, the study says.^[3]

Telegram for the first time bypassed YouTube in terms of daily audience in Russia

The daily Russian audience of the messenger in March 2023 amounted to 50.9 million people, video hosting - 50.7 million. The growth of Telegram's daily audience since January 2022 was plus 104%.

2022: Daily audience over 12 years old - 45.517 million people

2021: Leader in mobile traffic in most regions of Russia

In 2021, Telegram became the fastest growing messenger in: Russia over the year, the volume mobile internet traffic in the service more than doubled. Specialists came to such conclusions MegaFon on the basis big data of analysis and reported this on December 22, 2021. More. here

2025

Fine of 7 million rubles for refusing to delete information about LGBT people

In February 2026, the court fined Telegram for repeated refusal to delete information about alcoholic beverages and LGBT people (recognized in the Russian Federation as extremist and prohibited). The amount of the fine amounted to 7 million rubles. Since February 10, 2026, Roskomnadzor has strengthened measures to slow down the messenger. Ministry of Digital Development believes that Telegram is used by foreign special services in order to obtain data for conducting hostilities against Russia. Founder Pavel Durov became a defendant in a criminal case on the promotion of terrorist activities.^[4]

Telegram blocked $500 million in Russia due to sanctions

In January 2026, information appeared about the blocking of bonds of the Telegram messenger in the amount of $500 million in the Russian National Settlement Depository (NSD). The blocking of assets occurred as a result of Western sanctions measures imposed against NSD in 2022.

The freezing of bonds was reported by the Financial Times, citing informed sources. According to the FT, the restrictions imposed apply to all Western companies whose debt securities are held by Russian investors.

In Russia blocked the assets of Telegram for $500 million due to sanctions

According to the publication, this situation demonstrates the continuing connection of Telegram's business with Russian capital, despite public statements by the founder of the service, Pavel Durov, about severing ties with the Russian Federation. The company has recently been actively involved in debt restructuring.

Earlier, Telegram placed convertible bonds for $1.7 billion, the funds from which were used to buy back previous issues. Some of the securities due in 2026 have already been redeemed.

In negotiations with investors, the company informed holders of plans to pay off the debt blocked in NSD after its official maturity. The final decision on the possibility of payments directly to Russian bondholders will be made later.

A separate factor affecting the development of Telegram is litigation in France. The French authorities have charged the founder of the messenger Pavel Durov with insufficient measures to combat illegal content in the service. Durov denies these allegations. This lawsuit, as noted by the Financial Times, has already influenced the company's corporate plans, leading to a postponement of a possible initial public offering (IPO).^[5]

Fine of 6 million rubles for violation of the legislation of the Russian Federation

The World Court of the Tagansky District fined the Telegram messenger in the amount of 6 million rubles for violating the legislation of the Russian Federation. This was announced in December 2025 in the press service of the court. The messenger was found guilty of committing an administrative offense under Art. 19.7.10-4 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation (Failure by the owner of a social network to comply with the order of the federal executive body). Telegram has been repeatedly fined in the Russian Federation for violations, including non-removal of prohibited content.^[6]

5 Russian bloggers for advertising income in Telegram

According to the results of the first three quarters of 2025, the income of large Russian bloggers in Telegram amounted to 119 million rubles. This is almost 20% less compared to the same period in 2024, when the figure reached 144 million rubles. Such data at the end of October 2025 was published by the Association of Bloggers and Agencies (ABA). Read more here.

How Telegram accounts are hijacked in Russia. Main diagrams

Cybercriminals in Russia are actively using new fraudulent schemes aimed at hijacking Telegram accounts. The victims are participants in the SVO, as well as motorists. This is stated in the material published on October 27, 2025 by F6, which specializes in the development of technologies in the field of information security.

One of the schemes is aimed at Russian military personnel. The attackers created a fake site "Calculator of military payments," disguised as an official state service. Participants of the SVO are invited to calculate the amount of payments due, taking into account the age and length of service, the region of service, rank, marital status and the number of children, as well as the available awards. After entering the data, the user is shown the preliminary amount of payments and for a more accurate calculation is offered to log in through the state service or through Telegram. In the first case, an error occurs, which leaves only one option - authorization through Telegram. If the victim indicates the phone number associated with the messenger account and enters a confirmation code, scammers will immediately gain access to the account.

The victims of the second scheme can be ordinary motorists. Through the fake website of the state service, citizens "affected by the attacks of Ukrainian drones on the fuel infrastructure" are invited to receive coupons with a 30 percent discount on gasoline and diesel fuel. To do this, you need to fill out a questionnaire indicating the type of vehicle, the type of damage and the desired amount of automobile fuel. After that, the Telegram account is hijacked according to the first scenario.

Having gained access to the victim's account, attackers can conduct espionage (read or upload correspondence), as well as implement various fraudulent campaigns in order to steal money from user contacts, distribute malicious files, links, etc.^[7]

Roskomnadzor drew up a protocol against Telegram for violation in terms of working with personal data

The Roskomnadzor Directorate for the Central Federal District has drawn up a protocol against a legal entity Telegram for failure to comply with the department's requirements in terms of protecting the rights of subjects. personal data This was announced on August 27, 2025 Committee of the State Duma of the Russian Federation on Information Policy, Information Technologies and Communications Anton Nemkin by the press service of the member with reference to. TASS

The protocol was drawn up for failure to comply with the requirement of Roskomnadzor as an authorized body for the protection of the rights of personal data subjects, the department said.

According to the published definition, the arbitration court Moscow accepted the application of the Office of Roskomnadzor in the Central Federal District to Telegram Messenger Inc.

on bringing to administrative responsibility under Part 5 of Art. 13.11 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation - "Failure by the operator in time, established by the legislation of the Russian Federation in the field of personal data, the requirements of the personal data subject or his representative or the authorized body for the protection of the rights of personal data subjects to clarify personal data, blocking or destroying them if the personal data is incomplete, obsolete, inaccurate, illegally obtained or not necessary for the stated purpose of processing. "

The corresponding offense entails the imposition of an administrative fine on legal entities in the amount of fifty thousand to ninety thousand rubles. According to Part 5.1 of Art. 13.11 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation, the repeated commission of such an administrative offense already entails the imposition of an administrative fine on legal entities from three hundred thousand to five hundred thousand rubles.

The situation with Telegram shows how sensitive the issue of protecting personal data remains, said Anton Nemkin.

SIM-card and messenger are actually keys to our digital services, banking applications, social networks. Any flaw in this area can result in serious consequences for citizens, up to the loss of access to their data or financial resources, - said the deputy.

It is important to understand that personal data is not abstract numbers and letters in the database, but specific information about a person: his health, family ties, financial transactions. Therefore, the state has the right to demand from all digital platforms, including such large ones as Telegram, strict compliance with legislation in this area, Nemkin emphasized.

At the same time, we are not talking about the desire to somehow limit the work of the messenger. On the contrary, the more popular the service, the higher its responsibility to users should be. For Telegram, where millions of Russians communicate and do business, it is critical to establish systematic interaction with the regulator and build transparent processes for the processing and protection of personal data. If the company can build the work in accordance with the requirements of the law, it will increase user confidence and reduce risks for all parties. Ultimately, the goal of these measures is one - to create a safe digital space where the rights of citizens are reliably protected, and personal information does not become a tool in the hands of fraudsters or intruders, the parliamentarian concluded.

Blocking calls in Russia - confirmed by Roskomnadzor

On August 13, 2025, Roskomnadzor officially announced the blocking of calls in foreign messengers. This measure affects, in particular, Telegram and WhatsApp (owned by Meta, which is recognized as extremist and banned in the Russian Federation) - it has become almost impossible to communicate through these applications through voice communication in Russia.

The regulator notes that the restriction is aimed at combating telephone fraud. Roskomnadzor, referring to law enforcement data, says that Telegram and WhatsApp have become "the main voice services used to deceive and extort money, involve Russian citizens in sabotage and terrorist activities." In this regard, a ban on calls in foreign messengers is introduced.

Roskomnadzor officially announced the blocking of calls in foreign messengers. Talking on WhatsApp and Telegram is almost impossible

We inform you that in order to counter criminals, in accordance with the materials of law enforcement agencies, measures are being taken to partially limit calls in these foreign messengers. No other restrictions on their functionality are introduced, the agency reports.

Meanwhile, the first deputy head of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, Information Technology and Communications Anton Tkachev ("New People") calls the idea of ​ ​ limiting voice communication through instant messengers a utopia. In his opinion, Russians are accustomed to this method of communication, and therefore will look for ways to bypass locks or use domestic services for calls.

Tkachev says that the request to ban calls through foreign messengers came from the "Big Four" of Russian mobile operators - MTS, MegaFon, Beeline and Tele2. These companies claim that due to calls through instant messengers, subscribers began to use less conventional telephony. This leads to the fact that operators lose the funds that are required, among other things, to maintain and develop infrastructure.^[8]

A fine of 3.5 million rubles for violating the procedure for restricting access to information and information resources

The Telegram messenger received a fine of 3.5 million rubles for violating the procedure for restricting access to information and information resources. This was announced on August 12, 2025 by the press service of Anton Nemkin, a member of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, Information Technology and Communications.

By a resolution of the Tagansky District Court of Moscow, Telegram Messenger Inc. was found guilty of committing an administrative offense under Part 2 of Article 13.41 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation, and an administrative penalty was imposed in the form of an administrative fine of 3.5 million rubles, according to the Telegram channel of the Courts of General Jurisdiction of the capital.

Earlier, Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov announced that his administration would block channels that are involved in doxxing (illegal publication of personal data) and extortion.

After my publication 20 days ago, users sent us hundreds of messages about fraud and blackmail. Based on these messages this week, we are blocking many channels for doxxxing and extortion. Blocking for this reason means that we have irrefutable evidence that the channel's administrators published slanderous posts and then deleted them in exchange for money from the victims, Durov wrote on his Telegram channel.

Of course, the removal of such resources is a step in the right direction, notes Anton Nemkin.

As Nemkin emphasized, every day fraudsters use the granted anonymity and lack of real control to attack users with impunity.

Opening of a representative office in Russia

Telegram has started opening a representative office in Russia, the process is under approval. This is stated in July 2025 on the website of Roskomnadzor. Telegram has already fulfilled two other requirements of the law on "landing." It has been in effect since 2022. Large foreign IT companies with an audience of more than 500 thousand Russian users per day are required to open a branch or representative office and post a feedback form with users on the website and register a personal account on the Roskomnadzor website for interaction with the authorities.^[9]

Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia: Fraudsters have learned to steal telegram channels through the offer of publications

Cyber ​ ​ fraudsters began to actively use the "Proposed Publications" function in the messenger Telegram to steal the accounts of channel owners. This was reported by the department for organizing the fight against the illegal use of information and communication technologies on MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS Russia July 11, 2025.

In June 2025, an increase in the registration of potentially phishing domains containing the names telegram, tg and others was recorded by 40%. Cyber ​ ​ police warns of a new fraud scheme aimed at taking possession of Telegram channels.

Fraudsters have learned to steal telegram channels through the offer of publications

Attackers send offers to Telegram channel owners to post paid publications. As a rule, channels with an audience of up to 10 thousand subscribers become the target. Such messages contain malicious links leading to fake Telegram authorization pages.

Once on the fake page, the victim enters the login and code from the SMS, thereby transmitting the data to the scammers. After obtaining the credentials, the attackers gain control over the account and full access to channel management.

Attack targets include several areas of fraudulent activity. Criminals use hijacked channels to deceive users through false sales and the placement of fraudulent ads. Another way of monetization is to extort a ransom for returning access to the account.

Fraudsters also steal funds from the Stars/NFT and Fragment.com systems - the Telegram team platform, where you can buy or sell digital assets of the messenger, for example, nicknames. Another goal is to place destructive content on captured channels.

In January 2025, Russians were warned about another scheme of deception on Telegram. Scammers, on behalf of messenger support, sent phishing links to secret chats, thanks to which they received victims' accounts.

Correspondence in secret chats can often not be deleted, in some cases it is not possible to take a screenshot or send a message to another person or to the real Telegram support service. On behalf of the support service, the scammers informed the victim of a request to delete the account.^[10]

The most popular crypto fraudsters' schemes against Russians on Telegram

BI.ZONE experts have identified two main schemes of cryptocurrency fraud in the Telegram messenger, which are actively used against Russian users. The number of phishing sites aimed at users of the popular messenger continues to grow at an alarming pace, experts said in July 2025. Read more here.

Fine of 7 million rubles

By a resolution of the Tagansky District Court of Moscow Telegram Messenger Inc. was found guilty of committing an administrative offense under Part 3 of Art. 13.50 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation (repeated failure by the owner of a social network to monitor or take measures to restrict access to information prohibited in the Russian Federation). An administrative punishment was imposed in the form of a fine of 7 million. This was reported in rubles July 2025 in the press service of the court.^[11]

Russian women are fined and convicted for maintaining intimate Telegram channels

Criminal cases on the facts of the distribution of intimate content through paid Telegram channels with the participation of women began to be recorded in Russia more and more often. The corresponding statistics were confirmed by messages from the Ministry of Internal Affairs dated June 6, 2025. The punishment for such activities can reach six years in prison. One of the last cases is being investigated in Yekaterinburg, where, according to police, a 25-year-old local resident received an income of ₽10 thousand from subscribers of her closed channel in a few months.

As reported by News"," the viewer wrote a statement to the Yekaterinburg woman, who came across an advertisement for an erotic channel in an online forum. The woman saw nude photos and videos of the model and went to the police. Employees MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS sent materials for examination, where the presence of pornography was confirmed.

Russians are fined and punished for maintaining intimate channels on Telegram.

The unemployed girl said that she created two Telegram channels to post her own photos and videos. She charged for access to the second channel depending on the subscription period.

Similar cases were recorded in different regions of Russia. In March 2025, a 28-year-old woman was detained in Moscow, who created closed channels in the messenger and sold access to intimate materials. The Muscovite was accused of illegal trafficking in pornography and detained in an apartment on Kakhovka Street.

In Voronezh, in 2024, a 24-year-old girl posted materials for adults for six months, including online broadcasts of intimate life. Access was provided by subscription: ₽3 thousand per month and ₽1,5 thousand with a monthly extension.

In Irkutsk in 2023, a girl was convicted of such activities. Her channel lasted several months, after which the model was detained. The court appointed conditional imprisonment for two years with a probationary period of two years, the Oktyabrsky District Court of Irkutsk reported.

In Novokuznetsk, a 36-year-old Telegram channel administrator was detained for posting someone else's intimate video to attract subscribers. Police found banned content while monitoring social media. The channel had 13 thousand subscribers. The blogger faces up to six years in prison.

Managing partner of AVG Legal Alexei Gavrishev explained that Russian legislation severely limits the circulation of pornographic materials on the Internet. It pornography means naturalistic scenes with an emphasis on physiological details, and not just images of a naked body.^[12]

Telegram fined millions of rubles for refusing to remove channels about same-sex relationships

The Moscow court fined Telegram the messenger ₽4 million for refusing to remove channels dedicated to same-sex relations. The decision was made at the end of May 2025.

The court found Telegram Messenger Inc. guilty of an administrative offense and sentenced it to an administrative fine. The text of the court decision was distributed by the TASS news agency.

Telegram was fined millions of rubles for refusing to remove channels dedicated to same-sex relationships

Experts Roskomnadzor have identified 10 channels in Telegram dedicated to same-sex sexual relations. Some of the channels were administered by bloggers, others by public organizations. After the discovery of the prohibited content, the supervisory authority has repeatedly sent demands to the messenger administration to remove the channels.

The requirements of Roskomnadzor were not fulfilled by the Telegram administration, which led to the initiation of an administrative case under the relevant article of the Code of Administrative Offenses. The court considered the case of violation by the company of Russian legislation in the field of protecting children from information harmful to their health and development.

According to the portal, this is not the first case of imposing fines on media companies for violating the legislation banning the propaganda of the LGBT movement (the LGBT movement is recognized as extremist and prohibited in Russia) among minors. In February 2025, the capital's Tagansky District Court imposed an administrative fine of ₽1 million on the TV Center TV channel on a similar charge.

The channel was found responsible for disseminating information to children that demonstrates non-traditional sexual relationships. The court found the fact of violation of the requirements of Russian legislation on the protection of children from harmful information.

Russian law provides for responsibility for promoting non-traditional sexual relations among minors. The law aims to protect children from information that can harm their mental health and moral development.^[13]*

For the first time, the Russian corporate messenger was integrated with Telegram

On March 19, 2025, the Russian technology company MyOffice announced that its corporate messenger Squadus had received integration with Telegram. Thanks to this, users will be able to communicate directly from the secure Squadus environment with customers, partners and contractors who prefer to work with Telegram. Read more here.

Detection of FireScam malware that disguises itself as Telegram Premium

Experts have identified the malicious FireScam software, which disguises itself as the Telegram Premium application and steals data from users of Android devices. This was announced on January 10, 2025 by the press service of Anton Nemkin, a member of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, Information Technology and Communications. Read more here.

2024

Telegram accounts for 19.8% of the income of Russian bloggers, or 11.5 billion rubles

According to the expert assessment of AKAR, based on data from the analytical platforms WhoIsBlogger and Yoloco, the total volume of the Russian blogger market in 2024 amounted to about 57-60 billion rubles. 80% of all investments are accounted for by the 500 largest advertisers, the remaining 20% - by tens of thousands of brands from the SMB segment. Telegram occupies 19.8% of the market with an investment of 11.5 billion rubles. Read more here.

Fraudsters began to create automated Telegram chats to steal Russian accounts

A new automated fraud scheme to steal Telegram accounts of Russian users was recorded by cybersecurity experts in November 2024. Attackers use automated group chats to bulk collect sensitive data and gain unauthorized access to accounts.

According to "Газета.ru," director for the development of the center for monitoring external digital threats Solar AURA GC "Solar" Alexander Vurasko revealed the activation of this scheme from the summer of 2024. Fraudsters create automated chats where they offer to vote for an allegedly familiar person whose account has already been compromised.

Fraudsters began to create automated Telegram chats to steal accounts

Solar AURA experts note that everything that is possible is automated within this scheme. Activity in chats is supported by special bots that imitate real users and call for voting. The system automatically moderates the content of chats and monitors the behavior of participants.

The scheme works through phishing resources, where the user is directed via links from the chat. When doubts arise or attempts to ask clarification questions, the system automatically deletes messages and excludes users from the group, which makes it difficult to detect fraudulent activity.

To protect against intruders, experts recommend not transferring personal data, including logins, passwords and codes, two-factor authentications on suspicious sites. It is important to use only official resources, check their addresses through search engines and use antivirus software to block malware.

A similar mechanism of automated fraud was previously used in schemes with fictitious reviews on marketplaces, where victims were asked to evaluate and redeem goods through fake services. Automation of the process allows attackers to reach a significant number of potential victims with minimal resources.^[14]

Users began to receive phishing links under the guise of free Premium subscriptions

A new fraud scheme using hacked Telegram accounts has been recorded in Russia. The first cases of sending phishing links were recorded on November 17, 2024. Attackers send phishing links, offering recipients a free one-year subscription to Telegram Premium.

Fraudsters hack user accounts, in particular, the accounts of press secretaries of government departments of the Sverdlovsk region, and send malicious links to their contacts.

Telegram users in Russia began to receive phishing links under the guise of free Premium subscriptions

A spokesman for the press group of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Yekaterinburg warned that clicking on such links could lead to the theft of confidential data, including bank information, phone numbers and passport data.

When checking suspicious links, it turned out that they lead to third-party resources masquerading as the official website of the messenger. Fraudsters use social engineering techniques, exploiting user confidence in officials.

To protect against scammers, experts recommend copying the sent links before navigating them to see the real address of the site. It is important to check all incoming offers, especially for free services or winnings.

Law enforcement agencies warn against transmitting codes and passwords from SMS messages to unknown persons. Attackers often use this data to gain access to banking applications and government services.

The scammers continued the attacks the next day, using different compromised accounts to spread malicious messages.

The police urge citizens to be vigilant and double-check any incoming information, especially if it contains offers to receive free services or unexpected bonuses.^[15]

Russian subscribers of financial Telegram channels are attacked by spy viruses

On November 1, 2024, it became known that Russian users of financial Telegram channels are being attacked by spyware viruses. Kaspersky Lab specialists reported a new cyber attack using the DarkMe Trojan, which is actively used to gain remote access to devices and steal subscriber data in more than 20 countries around the world, including Russia. Read more here.

A fine of 4 million rubles for refusing to remove prohibited information in Russia

On October 15, 2024, the Tagansky District Court of Moscow fined Telegram Messenger 4 million rubles for non-deletion of prohibited information. The company was found guilty of failure to remove information subject to elimination (part 2 of article 13.41 of the Administrative Code). For Telegram, this is the seventh fine since the beginning of 2024 for violating Russian laws. A similar Telegram fine was issued in August 2024. The reason was the refusal to remove fakes about the actions of the Russian army in the zone of special operation in Ukraine.

Theft of Telegram channels under the pretext of advertising

In October 2024, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia recorded a significant increase in the number of theft of Telegram channels carried out by cybercriminals under the guise of placing advertising integrations from large marketplaces.

According to TASS, the department for organizing the fight against the illegal use of information and communication technologies of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia has identified a new fraud scheme aimed at administrators and owners of Telegram channels.

Fraudsters in Russia began to steal Telegram channels under the pretext of advertising

Criminals demonstrate a high level of preparation for the implementation of illegal actions. To create the appearance of legitimacy, they are holding lengthy talks with potential victims that could go on for weeks. During the discussion, fraudsters work out in detail the terms of advertising placement, agree on content and negotiate the cost of services.

The final stage of the fraudulent scheme is the offer to register in the advertising office of the marketplace. Channel administrators are offered to follow the link to a phishing site, which is an exact copy of the official resource, and send a confirmation code for linking an account.

After passing the confirmation code, the owners lose access to their accounts. The successful implementation of the fraudulent scheme allows attackers to gain control not only over Telegram channels, but also access to all personal correspondence of users.

Cybersecurity experts recommend that Telegram channel administrators show increased vigilance when receiving offers for advertising cooperation. Special attention should be paid to authenticating websites and never passing confirmation codes to third parties. In addition, the owner of Telegram channels is recommended to use two-factor authentication and regularly check the security settings of their accounts to minimize the risks of unauthorized access.^[16]

Fraudsters began sending viruses to Russian Telegram users under the guise of photos

In October 2024, it became known that the Department for Organizing the Fight against the Illegal Use of Information and Communication Technologies of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia in the official Telegram channel of its division announced a new fraud scheme in the Telegram messenger. Attackers send private messages to users with malicious files disguised as images.

According to TASS, scammers send files with the "APK" extension, passing them off as ordinary photos. However, as experts from the Ministry of Internal Affairs emphasize, photographs cannot have such an extension that is typical for malicious software.

Fraudsters began sending viruses to Russian Telegram users, disguising them as photos

Experts cyber security note that files with the "APK" extension are usually used to install applications on devices with an operating system. Android Attackers use this feature to force users to inadvertently install on malware theirs. smartphones

The Ministry of Internal Affairs strongly recommends that Telegram users be vigilant and under no circumstances download suspicious files, especially if they are sent by strangers or have unusual extensions.^[17]

Many channels masquerading as Russian are associated with the Ukrainian authorities

Despite the "anonymity," most administrators of telegram channel networks are known. In October 2024, State Duma deputy Alexander Khinshtein named some of those who, according to him, are associated with the Ukrainian authorities:

• Taras Chornoivan, a native and citizen of Ukraine, has previous convictions. It administers one of the largest pro-Ukrainian nets, which includes the channels: Kompromat GRU, KGB-NKVD, Cello Case - RUSPRES, Echo of Moscow, Sobchak Portfolio, Colonel SVR, Another Roldugin, Cheka-GPU, Clan Mazaraki. The infill of the grid is constantly changing: old channels are blocked, but new ones appear.

• Konstantin Chernenko, a native and citizen of Ukraine. He leads a grid of channels: "K1," "Anticor," "Drama," "RUScompromising," "Nocor," etc. His partner is Igor Savchuk, a native and citizen of Ukraine, an ex-employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, a participant in hostilities in the Southeast as part of the Bandera battalion "Kyiv."

• Yaroslav Grekov, a native of the Russian Federation, lives in Thailand. The administrator of the channel "Boutique FSB," which constantly supports the news feeds Chornoivan and Chernenko. It does not produce unique content itself, but often becomes an entry point for spreading negativity in the interests of these grids.

• Spouses Aleksei Kozlov and Anastasia Abakumova (citizen of Ukraine), live in Montenegro. Administrators of the DOFA resource (formerly The Moscow Post). In addition, Kozlov is the editor-in-chief of Nebokhod-Media LLC, which includes the network publications Morning News, Documents and Facts.

All of the above people are actively cooperating with the SBU, which means they are working against Russia. It is reliably known, for example, that Savchuk performed the tasks of the famous 72nd center of the CIPSO (now the special center "North" or military unit A4398 of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is one of the main Ukrainian military centers for information and psychological struggle).

Administrators and channel owners (together with the SBU) - see a lot of personal data of their readers (photo, date of birth, nickname, phone number, etc.)

The collected databases fall into a fraudulent call center, which in many ways operate in Ukraine under the guise of the SBU.

Nikname @ moscow in Telegram sold for ₽20 million

On the crypto platform Fragment, created by the developers of Telegram, a record deal was held to sell the unique nickname @ moscow. This became known in October 2024. The acquisition cost was 40,000 TON coins, equivalent to ₽20 million at the current exchange rate.

The nikname auction started on October 3, 2024 with an initial bid of 10 TON. During the week, the price increased 4,000 times, reaching a total of 40,000 TON by October 10, 2024.

Telegram

The winner of the auction was the Moscow Today news channel. The administration of the channel explained the purchase by the desire to have the most memorable username among Moscow Telegram channels.

The story of @ moscow nickname in the Russian market began back in 2020, when Denis Marzaganov, the author of the Marzaganov Broadcasts channel, tried to acquire it. However, then the deal did not take place, and the nickname was sold to an unknown person for ₽5 million. The current sale brought the previous owner a profit of ₽15 million, which may indicate the initial investment nature of the purchase.

Fragment, a Telegram username exchange, is part of the messenger ecosystem and runs on the basis of TON (Telegram Open Network) blockchain technology. TON is a decentralized computer network with a built-in proxy and anonymizer, providing messaging, cryptocurrency payments and data storage functions.

Experts note a growing interest in unique digital identifiers. Earlier, the nickname penis was sold on the same platform for ₽2 million, which is significantly inferior to the value of @ moscow.

The deal with nickname @ moscow demonstrates new trends in the digital economy, where virtual assets are gaining more and more value. Experts predict further growth in the market for unique identifiers in social networks and instant messengers^[18]

In St. Petersburg, officials were banned from using Telegram and WhatsApp

Since September 2024, government employees have been St. Petersburg banned from using messengers Telegram WhatsApp to exchange official information. According to the information provided by the office of the vice-governor of the city, the decision is related to the need to ensure the protection of correspondence and data of civil servants from compromise, destruction or modification. Instead, it was proposed to use the Russian eXpress platform, which meets the requirements. information security More here

A fine of 4 million rubles for refusing to delete false data on the losses of the Russian Federation

On March 8, 2024, it became known that the Telegram messenger was fined 4 million rubles for refusing to delete inaccurate data on the losses of the Russian army during a special operation. The corresponding decision was made by a magistrate in Moscow.

According to TASS, the decision regarding Telegram was made at the request of Roskomnadzor. The agency found in publications in a number of Telegram channels the presence of inaccurate information about the losses of the Russian Federation in the course of special information. This is said to be confirmed by screenshots taken on September 8 and 11, 2023. At the same time, on September 1, 2023, changes to the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation came into force, according to which social networks had responsibility for non-compliance with the requirements of the law on self-control.

Telegram fined 4 million rubles

After the appearance of false publications, Telegram did not take measures to remove them. On this basis, a protocol was drawn up, which was submitted to the court. Telegram representatives did not appear at the meeting on the case, despite the fact that they were "notified of the place and time of its holding through seven different official email addresses."

To recognize Telegram Messenger Inc. guilty of committing an administrative offense under Article 19.7.10-4 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation, and to impose a punishment on him in the form of an administrative fine in the amount of 4,000,000 rubles, the ruling says.

This article assumes responsibility for violation of the aforementioned law on self-control - refusal by the administration of a messenger or social network to remove content previously recognized as prohibited for distribution in the Russian Federation. The article entails the imposition of an administrative fine on citizens in the amount of 100 thousand to 200 thousand rubles; for officials - from 500 thousand to 800 thousand rubles; for legal entities - from 4 million to 6 million rubles.^[19]

Analysts of the Russian CIA department were banned from using Telegram

At the end of January 2024, information appeared that the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) banned employees of its analytical department specializing in Russia from using the Telegram messenger on personal computers. At the same time, analysts of the department are showing interest in this cross-platform instant messaging system, since it is used by many Russian military bloggers. Read more here.

In Russia, a scheme for tax evasion through Telegram bots has been identified. Damage to the budget estimated at 9 billion rubles

In Russia, a scheme for tax evasion through Telegram has been identified. It became known at the end of January 2024.

According to RBC, citing sources in law enforcement agencies and the tax service, a platform for the sale of one-day firms and fictitious VAT accrual has been identified in the Central Federal District (Central Federal District). about the investigation, services for the so-called "paper" VAT were distributed by Telegram bots. One of the interlocutors of the publication estimated the damage from the work of the site at 9 billion rubles.

Searches at ten addresses in Moscow and the Moscow region were confirmed by the publication in the Federal Tax Service. The service noted that all participants in the scheme have been identified - both the performers and their clients. Among those using the tax evasion scheme were companies that received funding from the budget, one of the sources said.

Searches in this case, in particular, are carried out in the offices of individual entrepreneur Tatyana Andreychuk, her husband Yuri Andreychuk and at the addresses of the place of residence of both, says one of the sources, noting that employees of the "K" department of the economic security service of the FSB, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Investigative Committee and the Federal Tax Service.

VAT is the largest source of revenue for the Russian budget, but there is a "paper" VAT scheme that allows companies to evade paying this tax. When using this scheme, the company includes fictitious transactions with one-day firms in the relationship chain, which increases the "input" VAT and reduces the amount of tax payable.

The head of the Federal Tax Service (FTS) Daniil Egorov told RBC that by the beginning of January 2024, taxpayers rarely "themselves they construct a VAT scheme by craft method, "special shadow platforms are engaged in illegal tax reimbursement activities^[20]

2023

Advertising sales in the Russian segment of Telegram for the year reached 3.7 billion rubles

Advertising sales in the Russian segment of Telegram in 2023 reached 3.7 billion rubles. This was reported in April 2024 in Roskomnadzor with reference to the data of the Unified Register of Internet Advertising, the operator of which is the department.^[21]

Moscow court sentenced Telegram channel administrator to 14 years in prison for treason

On December 27, 2023, the Second Western District Military Court in Moscow sentenced Felix Yeliseyev, administrator of two Telegram channels (included in the list of terrorists and extremists of Rosfinmonitoring), to 14 years in prison on charges of treason and public justification of terrorism. He will serve his sentence in a maximum security penal colony. The convict was fined 100 thousand rubles. Read more here.

Russia has developed software to determine the owners of Telegram channels

Russia has developed software to determine the owners of Telegram channels. It was called "Comrade Major." This is a product of T.Hunter. Read more here.

Start of sales of Telegram bonds with conversion into shares in IPO

At the end of October 2023, Russia began selling Telegram bonds with conversion into shares in an IPO. This offer was made to clients by BCS World of Investments.

The fact that the brokerage company proposes to purchase Telegram bonds issued in 2021, which can be converted into shares at an IPO with a guaranteed yield, is written by Vedomosti with reference to a presentation published on the Wutmu Telegram channel about TON. The Association of Bondholders (ABO) confirmed to the newspaper that it had received appeals from investors familiar with the content of the presentation.

It follows from it that bond buyers will be able to convert their face value into shares in the Telegram IPO, which is scheduled for the second or third quarter of 2025. The conversion is planned at a discount:

• 10% if the IPO takes place before March 2024;
• 15% in the event of an IPO until March 2025;
• 20% if the IPO takes place before March 2026.

If the shares are not placed, investors are promised to repay the bonds in 2026.

The AVO drew attention to the terms of the BCS offer for customers. The presentation, in particular, says that at the time of the conclusion of the settlement contract, the underlying asset (Telegram bonds with a coupon of 7%) was not purchased. On the same slide, it indicates that if BCS fails to purchase the underlying asset, customers will be refunded money with a yield of 3% per annum. The BCS declined to comment at the request of Vedomosti.

Earlier, the newspaper wrote that Telegram's IPO was planned for 2023. The most attractive scenario for Telegram shareholders is a direct listing, for example, on New York, NYSE as the corporate messenger did, experts Slack interviewed by the publication note. In their opinion, during the initial placement, Telegram can be estimated at $30-50 billion.^[22]

PRE-IPO Telegram Inc.

Fraudsters fake telegram accounts of CEOs of the largest Russian companies

BI.ZONE has identified massive attacks on representatives of large Russian businesses and government organizations based on social engineering methods. Attackers contact employees of companies using fake Telegram accounts. Accounts contain F.I.O. and photos of top managers. BI.Zone announced this on September 18, 2023. Read more here.

For the first time, a court in the Russian Federation fined Telegram for violating the circulation of personal data

On August 24, 2023, the court RUSSIAN FEDERATION fined for the first time Telegram for violating the circulation of personal data. The reason for bringing Telegram to justice was the appeal to Roskomnadzor the employee Federal Accreditation Service Lesya Len.

For the first time, the court found Telegram guilty under Part 5 of Art. 13.11 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation (failure by the operator to specify personal data if they are inaccurate or illegally obtained) and sentenced her to a fine of 50 thousand rubles, - ruled judge Timur Vakhrameev (quoted by TASS).

According to the news agency, Lesya Len noticed that the post "Everyone is not lazy" appeared on the AntiGost Telegram channel. It indicated that Len took the post of deputy head of the department for work with registers and analysts of Rosaccreditation. At the same time, Len is a former citizen of Ukraine. It emphasizes that Len received a Russian passport in February 2018, and in July she was hired by the Russian government agency.

The Telegram channel also indicated that Len is a graduate of the Kyiv National University of Internal Affairs and has more than 10 years of work experience (11.2004 - 06.2015) as a senior operative of the operational escort group of a special company of the judicial police "Griffin" of the Ministry of Ukraine in the Nikolaev region. The woman's relatives permanently reside in Ukraine. Roskomnadzor, at the request of Laziness, demanded that Telegram delete her personal data, but this was not done.

By August 2023, the Russian law "On Personal Data" obliges Russian and foreign companies to store personal information of Russians only in Russia. In case of violations, the service may be blocked, and the company that committed the violation may be fined.^[23]

Ministry of Digital Development of the Saratov region banned employees from using iPhone and Telegram

The Ministry of Digital Development and Communications of the Saratov Region has banned its employees from using the Telegram messenger and Apple devices for official purposes. This became known in mid-August 2023. Read more here.

A scheme to deceive customers through photos of bank cards has appeared in Russia

A new Telegram fraud scheme has been recorded in Russia. Representatives of VTB shared information about this with TAdviser on July 19, 2023.

As experts found out, bank under various pretexts cybercriminals they hack into an account messenger in and ask acquaintances and loved ones of the user to transfer funds to their account in a third-party bank, using a fake design maps of large credit institutions.

Fraudsters implement this scheme in two stages. First, Telegram receives a message from a friend who asks to vote for a relative at the competition, purchase stock products, etc. When clicking on the link, the user is asked to indicate the phone number and confirm the vote with an SMS code. In fact, the client is on a phishing resource and enters a password that allows scammers to access his Telegram account.

Then, from the hacked account, fraudsters send messages with a story about the force majeure that occurred and a request to transfer money to their card number. In fact, her image is a fake created using a special Telegram bot. The card number is real, but the account is in another bank - as a rule, not so large and noticeable, so this does not cause suspicion among users.

This scheme allows scammers to buy time to withdraw stolen funds. A customer who has lost money first contacts a bank whose design was used by scammers, and only then realizes that he actually sent the money to another organization. At the same time, fraudsters manage to cash out the funds received and use them for their own purposes.

"The activity of fraudsters in Telegram has intensified in recent weeks, we receive customer messages about attempts to hack their accounts, which are subsequently used in such schemes. The innovation was a bot that allows you to fake an image of a card and send customers "on a false trail," "said Nikita Chugunov, Senior Vice President of VTB, Head of the Digital Business Department.

According to him, earlier these were isolated cases, fraudsters changed the name and substituted the design of the card of the necessary bank in manual mode using graphic editors. Now the attackers have automated the process using a Telegram bot and are making fakes many times faster. The use of such technology in the hands of fraudsters, according to the top manager, can become widespread.

"In order not to fall victim to such schemes, we ask our users to carefully check the messages that even your friend or relative may send. Remember that his account can already be hacked, so at the slightest doubt, it is better to check this information with him personally and in alternative channels - for example, with a simple phone call. To restore access to your account, a person always needs the time that scammers use for their criminal purposes. It is important to know this and not give them a chance to catch you on this trick, "warns Nikita Chugunov.

To protect your account, experts advise setting up two-step authentication in the "Privacy" section and setting a cloud password, which will be requested when logging in from a new device in addition to SMS code.

If the Telegram account is still hacked, do not panic. You must complete all active sessions first. To do this, select the "Privacy" item, then in the "Devices" menu click "End all other sessions" and change the password. You can also write on other social networks or instant messengers that the account was hacked so that subscribers would not fall for the tricks of scammers. To control the access of third parties to the Telegram account, it is necessary to periodically check the application settings in the messenger.

Fine of 4 million rubles for refusing to remove 32 channels with inaccurate information about SVO

On June 20, 2023, the magistrate of the Tagansky district of Moscow fined Telegram messenger 4 million rubles for refusing to delete information prohibited in Russia. The company was found guilty under Part 2 of Article 13.41 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation. The messenger was assigned the maximum possible fine provided for by this article of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation.

According to RIA Novosti, citing the decision of the magistrate of the judicial district of the Tagansky district of Moscow Timur Vakhrameev, representatives of the messenger do not go to meetings in principle, but they paid the fines. On June 20, 2023, service representatives did not participate in the meeting either.

At the request of the First Deputy Prosecutor General, Roskomnadzor received 32 notifications to a number of Telegram channels (including the resources of foreign media agents: Radio Liberty (the organization is included by the Ministry of Justice in the list of foreign agents), Dozhd TV channel (the organization is included by the Ministry of Justice in the list of foreign agents), Meduza (the organization is included by the Ministry of Justice in the list of foreign agents), "Caucasus Realities" (the organization is included by the Ministry of Justice in the list of foreign agents), "Siberia Realities" (the organization is included by the Ministry of Justice in the list of foreign agents), etc.) with the requirement to restrict access to inaccurate information about the conduct of a special military operation of the Russian Federation in Ukraine and its participants. In addition, information about the illegal acquisition of fake documents was subject to removal.

According to RIA Novosti, from the beginning of 2021 to June 20, 2023, Telegram was fined 17 times under similar protocols for a total of 50.5 million rubles. At the same time, the head of the Ministry of Digital Science Maksut Shadayev said that there are no plans to restrict the work of instant messengers for Russians to communicate.^[24]

The number of phishing data theft schemes through Telegram in Russia has grown 67 times

The number of phishing data theft schemes through Telegram in Russia increased 67 times over the year - from 7 in May 2022 to 470 a year later. This was announced at the end of May 2023 by RTK-Solar.

According to the expert "RTK-Solar" Alexander Vurasko, a powerful wave of attacks on Telegram users does not stop from the fall of 2022. Scammers most often use social phishing resources to steal access to an account. Since the beginning of 2023, experts have recorded fake sites that offered to vote at the children's drawing competition, sign a petition, donate money for the treatment of a child, receive social benefits, etc.

In another scenario, a fraudster under the guise of an advertising manager of a large company writes to the Telegram channel administrator about the desire to regularly post ads in the community. To get paid for these services, they offer to register in the "partner network," but after entering data on a phishing site, the administrator loses access to the account and/or channel, Asya Shabalina, digital director of the iTrend communication agency, described the scheme.

Sometimes the channel administrator is offered to authenticate in resources that simulate the TGStat and Telemetr analytics services, and as a result, his login and password fall into the hands of criminals, added Vadim Shelest, a leading MTS Red expert.

According to Vurasko, blocking a phishing resource that steals Telegram user accounts takes from 4 to 24 hours. According to BI.ZONE estimates, from January to May 2023, almost 4,000 phishing domains were identified.

Andrei Arsentiev, head of analytics and special projects at InfoWatch Group, told the publication that the number of Russian-speaking Telegram users in 2022 doubled to 75 million people, which led to a trend towards an increase in phishing attacks.^[25]

Telegram overtook WhatsApp for the first time in terms of traffic in Russia

Telegram for the first time overtook WhatsApp (owned by Meta, recognized as extremist and banned in the Russian Federation) in terms of traffic in Russia. This happened in 2022, Vedomosti writes on January 23, 2023, citing data from the largest Russian mobile operators.

Thus, the representative of MTS told the publication that the share of Telegram at the end of 2022 amounted to about 80% in the total volume of user traffic of instant messengers, and in terms of user activity it bypasses WhatsApp. The company clarified that WhatsApp is ahead of other messengers in terms of the number of users.

According to MegaFon, Telegram has maintained its leadership position in traffic since March 2022. In the last two weeks of December of the same year, its share in the total volume of traffic in instant messengers reached 61%, WhatsApp - 28%. VimpelCom reported that the volume of Telegram traffic in 2022 exceeded WhatsApp.

Tele2 reported that Telegram accounts for about 75% of all messenger traffic. On WhatsApp - 19%. At the same time, Telegram has not yet overtaken WhatsApp in terms of the number of users and is in second place, the operator added.

According to Karen Kazaryan, chief analyst of the Russian Association of Electronic Communications, Telegram will overtake WhatsApp in terms of the number of users in the country very soon.

Since WhatsApp has almost the entire mobile audience in Russia. Even if they catch up to overtake, the number of WhatsApp users should decline, "Ghazaryan said.

From the Mediascope statistics provided to the publication, it follows that by the beginning of January, compared to last year, the Telegram audience increased from 25.5 to 48.8 million users per day. Thus, by January 2023, the Telegram audience in Russia amounted to about 40% of all Internet users in the country, Vedomosti notes^[26]

2022

Increase in the average cost of an advertising post in Russian news Telegram channels by 341%

The average cost of advertising in Telegram news channels in Russia in 2022 amounted to 55,940 rubles, which is 341% more than a year earlier, when the figure was measured at 12,680 rubles. This is evidenced by data from the BeSeed native advertising platform, which was released at the end of May 2023.

As Vedomosti writes with reference to BeSeed materials, in all thematic categories in total, the cost of advertising in Telegram, in 2022, increased by an average of 76.5% and reached 29,050 rubles. The study analyzed advertising prices for about 350 Telegram channels - from small blogs (less than 10,000 subscribers) to large ones (more than 500,000), a BeSeed representative told the publication.

According to the study, a multiple increase in advertising prices was recorded in Telegram channels about real estate - by 143% to 30,775 rubles, health - by 138% to 11,978 rubles, job search - by 124% to 22,075 rubles and about urban communities - by 102% to 17,608 rubles). However, news channels showed "the most abnormal dynamics," BeSeed points out.

According to Mediascope, cited by the publication, news channels make up 43% of the top 30 Telegram channels in terms of average daily coverage among Russians over 12 years old.

Among channels with an audience of 500 thousand subscribers in the news segment, the largest increase in the price of an advertising post, according to BeSeed analysts, was shown by Moskvach (665,580 subscribers) and Baza (911 800 subscribers). Moskvach's price increased by 72.8% - to about 198 thousand rubles, Baza's - by 66.7% to 180 thousand rubles.

Mash (1.8 million subscribers) in 2022, the cost of advertising increased by 71%, to about 600 thousand rubles, said Arthur Karapetyan, head of the Social Mind digital agency.^[27]

Telegram channels of Russians began to "steal" in a new way. Scheme

At the end of December 2022, it became known about the new scheme of "hijacking" Telegram accounts in Russia. It's about using fake contests.

According to Kaspersky Lab, someone from the user's contact list asks him to take part in some online voting and sends a link to the site. To count votes, you need to enter your phone number and verification code. If a user does this, their account is likely to be stolen, experts warn.

In fact, there is no competition, and the messages are written not by a friend from the contact list, but by an attacker who previously stole his account , "Kaspersky Lab said in a statement.

The user is convinced to take the necessary actions by talking about the child participating in the competition, or write "vote for me," without going into details.

The polling site looks simple. On the first page - the message "Come in and vote for the contestants," the field for entering the phone, the proposal to authenticate for counting the voice and the field for entering the confirmation code, which was allegedly sent to the user in Telegram.

After the user specifies the phone number, the attackers log into his account using special scripts from the new device. When disabled two-factor authentications , the confirmation code comes to the device where the account is already activated. If a user enters a code on a phishing page, his account becomes the property of cybercriminals.

"Hijackers" will have the right to manage the victim's account and can link it to another phone, experts say. Fraudsters can also use the account to send fraudulent links through the victim's account, can export her contact list, personal data, correspondence history, files.^[28]

The Ministry of Digital Development warned of a massive "theft" of accounts in Telegram

In mid-December 2022, Ministry of Digital Development warned of a massive "theft" of Telegram accounts and talked about the scheme used by scammers:

• the user receives a message from someone from the contact list that he sent the user a gift - a subscription to Telegram Premium;
• the user clicks on the button, and at that moment he receives an authorization code. The gift screen says that this code must be entered to activate the premium subscription;
• the user enters this code, and his account is immediately opened from the attacker on the computer;
• the new account immediately sends such messages throughout the contact list and deletes them from the sent list. At the same time, the message remains with the recipients.

As noted in the Ministry of Digital Development, when stealing an account, it is not clear whether all the correspondence is downloaded and what other actions are taking place. To protect yourself from account theft, turn on two-factor authentication in the messenger and do not follow suspicious links, the department advises.

How to install two-factor authentication in Telegram: 1. Go to Settings → Privacy. 2. Select the section Two-step authentication and enable it. 3. Enter a password that will additionally protect your account. 4. Click Finish.

The Ministry of Digital Development also gives recommendations to those who have already clicked on the malicious link and sent the code: you need to go to Settings → Active sessions and click the End all other sessions link, and then enable two-factor authentication.

On June 19, 2022, a Premium subscription became available in the Telegram messenger. According to the developers, this option "will continue to develop and improve Telegram so that it remains free, independent and user-oriented."^[29]

Russia has learned to de-anonymize channel administrators in Telegram

In November 2022, it became known that law enforcement agencies in Russia have learned to de-anonymize channel administrators on Telegram. The corresponding methodological manual for employees of the Investigative Committee was developed at the Moscow Academy of the Investigative Committee.

The Investigative Committee has developed a number of methods that allow you to receive significant information from various messengers. These methods are intended exclusively for investigators and criminologists, the press service of the RF IC told Vedomosti, adding that messengers can be used by attackers to commit crimes.

According to the newspaper's sources, the methodology explains how to find the owner of an anonymous Telegram channel if there is no information about it in the description or a chatbot, email or Jabber of any of the administrators is left for feedback.

The manual also describes the methodology for collecting and analyzing data in the public domain. For example, experts look at the history of the channel, archival messages and try to calculate grids, that is, a number of communities created by one group of people to promote materials. And in one of the abandoned communities, the username of the owner can be found - and then the entire group of administrators is found along the chain.

Many attackers use Telegram because of the myth about the anonymity of users and channel administrators. For the same reason, a lot of insider information and compromising evidence on famous people and companies began to appear in the messenger.

Businessmen and politicians who have published registered articles with the possibility of paid removal are rare, but they are ready to pay a lot, "said Yevgeny Antipov, creator of Eye of God (a Russian platform specializing in providing information security solutions and services[30]

Sberbank asked employees to remove Telegram from work computers

At the end of August 2022, it became known that Sberbank employees were being asked to remove the Telegram messenger from their work computers. Instead, the bank proposes to use the Sberbank corporate messenger. Read more here.

Decision of Roskomnadzor on the application of coercion measures

Roskomnadzor On August 19, 2022 Telegram , he announced his decision to apply coercion measures against TikTok Pte. Zoom Video Communications Ltd., Telegram Messenger, Inc., , Inc.,. and Discord, Inc, Pinterest Inc. in the form of informing search engines Internet users about the violation by companies of the requirements of Russian the law. More. here

A service has been launched in Russia that finds Telegram users by IP address

In mid-August 2022, it became known about the creation of a service in Russia that finds Telegram users by IP address. This is a joint project of Internet Search and T.Hunter. More details here

A fine of 4 million rubles for refusing to remove a bot with data from the Russian military

On August 16, 2022, the judicial district No. 422 of the Tagansky district fined Telegram 4 million rubles for refusing to delete information that is prohibited by the laws of the Russian Federation. The company was found guilty of committing an administrative offense under Part 2 of Art. 13.41 of the Administrative Code (failure by the owner of an information resource in the information and telecommunication network of the Internet to remove information if the obligation to delete it is provided for by law).

As it clarifies TASS with reference to the press service of the judicial district, the messenger was fined for refusing to remove the bot "Look for your own," which reveals personal data the servicemen taking part in a special military operation on. To Ukraine The order to remove the bot came to Telegram from. Roskomnadzor

Also, according to the data announced in court, Roskomnadzor's claims to Telegram arose due to the refusal to remove channels calling for anti-government actions against the special operation and with inaccurate information about the losses of the Russian military.

In addition, the messenger was found guilty of failing to remove information in some Telegram channels containing calls for extremist activity. The case file says that we are talking about content that called for sabotage on the railways to complicate the movement of equipment of the Russian Armed Forces, and also contained arguments about anarchism. In this case, the court fined Telegram 7 million rubles.

Thus, in one day the service was fined by a Moscow court in the amount of 11 million rubles. Moreover, this is not the first fine for the company for refusing to delete data prohibited by Russian law.

Representatives of the messenger on August 16, 2022 did not appear in court, although they were notified of the date of the meeting. In this regard, the case was considered in their absence, reports TASS.^[31]

Telegram will not be closed

While Telegram is politically neutral, they will not touch it. This became known on March 13, 2022 from the words of Oleg Matveychev, deputy chairman of the committee on information policy, information technology and communications.

The founder of the Telegram messenger Pavel Durov found a compromise with the FSB, and the platform will not be blocked after other social networks.

The parties managed to agree that people's lives are important, because terrorists are talking through Telegram.

Telegram has installed equipment to track dangerous subjects, and responds to requests as part of operational measures.

The State Duma deputy stressed that Telegram "is just a platform with various bloggers." It has no censorship or manipulation of information like Facebook and Instagram. Of course, everything will change if Telegram allows the publication of calls for the murder of Russians.

Earlier, Pavel Durov urged users from Russia and Ukraine to doubt any data that is being distributed in Telegram at this time. He is against Telegram being used as a tool to exacerbate conflicts and incite ethnic hatred.

On April 16, 2018, Roskomnadzor began blocking access to Telegram on the territory of the Russian Federation. However, almost all day the messenger continued to work without proxy servers and VPN services. In order to bypass the blocking, the Telegram team used a well-known scheme in which the blocking by IP addresses used by Roskomnadzor becomes useless.

In June 2020, Roskomnadzor unblocked Telegram. As Durov assured, there will be no changes in terms of the safety of personal data - the right to privacy and privacy of personal correspondence will remain the fundamental principle of Telegram in all countries^[32].

2021

Disabling advertising on Telegram, but only for officials and government agencies

On November 24, 2021, it became known that Pavel Durov he promised to turn off advertizing Telegram on channels belonging to Russian officials and various. He to state agencies stated this after, for example, resources about began to be advertised on the FSIN channel. cryptocurrencies Earlier, Durov promised never to run advertising on Telegram, but he could not keep this word. The advertising platform started working messenger in test mode in November 2021.

Channels run by private companies or ordinary users were not among the "favorites." What prompted Durov to disconnect the channels of officials and government agencies from the advertising platform remains a mystery.

Durov's advertising platform in the version that was launched in November 2021 did not always distinguish "state" channels from ordinary ones. This manifested itself in the publication of advertising posts, either in no way, or very indirectly related to the topic of the channels.

The list of conditions for advertising in Telegram includes the mandatory availability of free 2 million euros (169 million rubles at the Central Bank exchange rate as of November 24, 2021). Exactly so much is the minimum budget for an advertising campaign in this messenger. The advertising post cannot be longer than 160 characters, and it will be published only on channels with an audience exceeding 1000 people^[33].

Integration with Talantix

• the Cloudy CRM recruitment system Talantix (part of the HR ecosystem) hh.ru has expanded the opportunities for HR teams to communicate with candidates within the service. Viber WhatsApp Telegram has been added to the existing integrations - from and. HeadHunter announced this on November 22, 2021. More. here

A fine of 3 million rubles for non-removal of prohibited content

On November 18, 2021, the Magistrate's Court in Moscow fined Telegram another 3 million rubles for refusing the messenger to delete information that is prohibited in Russia. The company was found guilty of an administrative offense under Part 2 of Art. 13.41 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation (refusal to delete information, the removal of which is mandatory in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation).

According to Interfax, the total amount of fines received by Telegram from the beginning of 2021 to November 18 exceeded 40 million rubles. Some of the regulations have not yet entered into force.

According to Roskomnadzor, in 2021 Telegram, Facebook and a number of other services did not delete or untimely removed calls for minors to participate in unauthorized protests. The amount of fines against companies by November 18, 2021 is about 200 million rubles. In October 2021, Roskomnadzor announced that more than 427,000 materials with prohibited content were blocked on social networks from January to September 2021.

Earlier in 2021, the former press secretary of Roskomnadzor Vadim Ampelonsky spoke about the details of blocking the Telegram messenger in Russia. In particular, he calculated how much money his creator Pavel Durov spent to save the messenger from disconnection.

According to Ampelonsky, Telegram initially used eight thousand IP addresses. By the beginning of the blocking, their number had grown to 15.5 million. According to the estimates of the former press secretary of Roskomnadzor, the increase in IP addresses for Telegram cost Durov about $75 thousand per hour.

At the end of September 2021, Pavel Durov explained that Telegram had removed the Smart Voting bot due to pressure on the messenger from Apple and Google and the need to comply with local laws. Durov noted that in case of disobedience to the requirement, Roskomnadzor would simply start blocking the web version of Telegram using TSPU from Russian providers, and the messenger could not do anything about it.^[34]

A fine of 4 million rubles for refusing to remove content prohibited in the Russian Federation

On November 8, 2021, the magistrate of the judicial district No. 422 of the Tagansky district issued a decision to impose a fine on Telegram in the amount of 4 million rubles for refusing to remove content that is prohibited by Russian law. Thus, the total amount of requirements for the messenger reached 39 million rubles.

Telegram was found guilty under Article 13.41 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation ("Failure by the owner of an information resource on the Internet of information, if the obligation to remove it is provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation").

On November 1, 2021, Roskomnadzor announced that Facebook, Twitter, Telegram, Google, TikTok, Odnoklassniki and VKontakte have been fined 187 million rubles since the beginning of the year for non-deletion of prohibited information.

As a result of the joint activities of Roskomnadzor MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS Russia and in 2020-2021, 84,569 sites and their separate pages with propaganda of drug use were added to the Unified Register of Prohibited Information, of which 4179 were pages of users and Telegram channels, as well as 10,498 special sites.

The protocols regarding Telegram were drawn up in connection with the failure to delete information that involved teenagers in participating in unauthorized mass events, as well as other content prohibited by Russian law.

The next meeting on the case related to the unwillingness to remove prohibited content in Telegram is scheduled for November 18, 2021. The company faces a punishment in the amount of 800 thousand to 4 million rubles. For repeated violation, a revolving fine is established from 1/10 to 1/5 of annual revenue under Part 5 of Art. 13.41 of the Administrative Code. Roskomnadzor has repeatedly warned that it could impose negotiable fines on Telegram, Facebook and Twitter. The new fine can range from 5% to 10% of annual revenue, its exact amount will be determined by the court.^[35]

Fine of 9 million for non-deletion of illegal information

On September 14, 2021, the Tagansky Court of Moscow fined Twitter and Telegram 5 million and 9 million rubles, respectively, for failure to comply with orders to remove content banned in Russia. Read more here.

A fine of 11 million rubles for refusing to remove content prohibited in Russia

On July 22, 2021, the Tagansky District Court of Moscow fined Telegram 11 million rubles for refusing to remove content prohibited by Russian law. The total amount of fines issued to the messenger in recent months amounted to 26 million rubles.

Fines in the amount of 5, 4 and 2 million rubles in relation to Telegram were issued under three similar protocols. The company was found guilty of committing an administrative offense under Part Two of Article 13.41 (Failure by the owner of the site or the owner of an information resource in the information and telecommunication network "Internet" of information or an Internet page if the obligation to remove such information is provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation). The decision was made by the magistrate of the judicial district No. 422. Telegram Messenger, RIA Novosti reports with reference to the press secretary of the Tagansky District Court Zulfiya Gurinchuk.

The decisions do not say which posts are in question. Previously, such decisions are made by the court for publications in which people were agitated to go to uncoordinated protests.

According to the agency, according to the legislation in force by July 2021, if the Internet platform, after notification from the department, has not limited access to prohibited information, then it can be punished in the amount of 800 thousand to 4 million rubles. In case of repeated violation, the penalty is increased to one tenth of the total amount of annual revenue.

Measures for refusing to erase information with calls for extremism, child pornography and methods of making drugs are more serious: up to eight million rubles. For repeated refusal to remove such content - up to one fifth of the total amount of the company's annual revenue.^[36]

Moscow court  fined Telegram 10 million rubles

On June 10, 2021, the Tagansky District  Court of Moscow fined Telegram 10 million rubles in four administrative cases, in which the messenger was accused of refusing to remove prohibited content.

According to the press service of the court, in two cases, fines amounted to 2 million rubles and in two more - 3 million rubles. All cases were initiated under Part 2 of Art. 13.41  CoAPRossia (Violation of the procedure for restricting access to information). At the same time, it is not specified what content we are talking about.

In addition to Telegram, the Tagansky District Court of Moscow fined Facebook under the same article. In relation to the world's largest social network, four protocols were drawn up (for two - a fine of 5 million rubles each, for the remaining two - 3 and 4 million rubles each). Thus, Facebook will have to pay 17 million rubles for refusing to remove content prohibited by Russian law. What materials appeared in administrative cases against Facebook is also not reported.

According to Roskomnadzor, in social networks with calls for participation in illegal actions, more than 2.5 thousand materials were revealed in January and February 2021. This violation entails a fine for legal entities from 800 thousand to 4 million rubles. In the event of a second offense, the amount of the fine will be increased to one tenth of the total amount of the company's annual revenue.^[37]

By mid-May 2021, 563 out of 5.9 thousand identified materials with child pornography, narcotic and suicidal content, calls for children to participate in uncoordinated actions, as well as extremist and other materials prohibited in the country, remained unreported, the department said without specifying the volume of materials stored in Telegram.

The head of Roskomnadzor, Andrei Lipov, previously told Kommersant that the department does not have an installation to block the work of foreign and domestic social networks and other Internet platforms.

Moscow court fined Telegram 5 million rubles

The Moscow court fined Telegram 5 million rubles. This became known on May 12, 2021.

The administration of the service refused to delete information on the order of Roskomnadzor, on the holding of January rallies in support of Alexei Navalny.

At the same time, Telegram faces four more fines in the amount of up to 16 million rubles. The magistrate's court of the Tagansky district received four protocols on an administrative offense against ^[38] messenger^[39]

Blackmail of Russians using data collected by Telegram bots

In early March 2021, it became known that fraudsters Russia in began to use, personal data collected - Telegramboats to blackmail users.

As the head of the information security department of "SearchInform" Aleksei Drozd told Kommersant, one of the sources of information for fraudsters was the MailSearchBot service of LeakCheck, which was originally created to check the "leaked" passwords.

This bot for a fee invites the user to find their logins and passwords by phone number, which were in the public domain. Fraudsters use this data to blackmail users by email, explains Drozd.

Victims are invited to pay so that their data is not disclosed to friends, relatives or colleagues, he said.

In addition, criminals can also introduce themselves as the service security service and after changing the compromised password, they can eventually get full access to the account, said Igor Bederov, founder of Internet Search.

In his opinion, in 2021 the scale of such fraud will increase. He believes that attackers can start extorting money from companies under the pretext of violating new laws. One of the reasons may be a ban on collecting data on people without their direct consent. Igor Bederov claims that business can start sending letters with fake fines.

Services use data that is already in the public domain, so the principle of their operation can be compared with a search engine, says Alexander Dvoryansky, director of strategic communications at Infosecurity a Softline Company. He stressed that if you use the same password for several years, the user risks becoming a victim of intruders.^[40]

2020

The European Commission has included VKontakte and Telegram in the list of pirated resources

In mid-December 2020, the European Commission published an updated list of pirated sites - the "Watch List for Counterfeit and Piracy." For the first time, it included the Telegram messenger and the VKontakte social network. Read more here.

TalkBank Express Checkout Availability

On August 10, 2020, TalkBank announced the launch of an instant transfer service by phone number in instant messengers.

According to the company, the TalkBank fast payment system for August 2020 is available to users of five messengers: WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber, Vkontakte, Facebook. You can even make translations using Alice's voice assistant. Read more here.

Unblocking Telegram will not affect the safety of personal data

On June 19, 2020, it became known that the creator of Telegram Pavel Durov commented on the removal by Roskomnadzor of restrictions on access to the messenger. As Durov assured, the stability and speed of Telegram mobile applications in Russia will increase, and direct web links to channels and services will become available without VPN. In terms of the safety of personal data, there will be no changes - the right to privacy and privacy of personal correspondence will remain a fundamental principle of Telegram in all countries.

I think that unlocking will be a good signal for IT entrepreneurs and investors. Such actions of the Russian authorities in this and other areas inspire optimism. I hope that the positive trend will be preserved, and Russia will be able to realize its potential in the digital sphere, - said Durov.

Roskomnadzor lifted the requirements to restrict access to the Telegram messenger in agreement with the General Prosecutor's Office. Attempts to block the messenger have been carried out for more than two years, but Russian users bypassed the blocking without any problems.

In April 2018, the Tagansky District Court Moscow satisfied the claim of Roskomnadzor to block Telegram on the territory. RUSSIAN FEDERATION On April 4, the 15-day deadline provided to the Telegram administration for the transfer of keys expired. enciphering FSB According to representatives of the service operator, this requirement could not be fulfilled for technical reasons.

In May 2020, State Duma deputies from "Fair Russia" Fedot Tumusov and Dmitry Ionin proposed a bill to stop blocking Telegram. According to the authors, unsuccessful attempts to block the messenger did not damage its development, but the prestige of the state power of the Russian Federation^[41].

Roskomnadzor will unblock Telegram

Roskomnadzor on June 18, 2020 announced the unblocking of Telegram. A message about this appeared on the regulator's website. The supervisory authority explained this by the fact that the Telegram leadership expressed its readiness to counter terrorism and extremism

"In agreement with the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation, Roskomnadzor removes the requirements for restricting access to the Telegram messenger. We are ready to interact with all Internet companies operating in the country to promptly suppress the spread of terrorist and extremist information, child pornography, propaganda of suicide and drugs, "Roskomnadzor.

Durov recalled that the messenger was blocked "under the auspices of the fight against terrorism."

"Although we did not have sympathy for terrorists even then, we have since come a long way to overcome these threats. During this time, methods of detecting and removing extremist propaganda have been improved, and now the Telegram team is stopping tens of thousands of attempts to spread public calls for violence and terror every month, "he wrote.

According to him, the mechanisms created to prevent terrorist attacks do not violate the secrecy of user correspondence and the company's experience in dozens of countries has shown that "the fight against terrorism and the right to privacy of personal correspondence do not exclude each other."

Recall that according to Russian legislation, Telegram is obliged by the FSB to provide encryption keys to the correspondence of all users.

The Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications did not support the initiative of the deputies to unblock Telegram

The Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media of the Russian Federation did not support the initiative of the Just Russia deputies to unblock the Telegram messenger during a period of high alert, Interfax reports.

"The amendment proposed by the bill to Article 15.4 of Federal Law No. 149-FZ, if adopted, may entail abuse of the right by dishonest organizers of the dissemination of information on the Internet, who will deliberately disseminate information about the activities of state and local authorities in order to avoid persecution," the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications said in its recall.

As explained in the department, the terms used in the bill, such as "official service," have no disclosure in the text and are not subject to use, and the wording "current situation" is doubtful and has an expansive interpretation.

The State Duma has prepared a bill to stop blocking Telegram

Deputies of the State Duma from "Fair Russia" proposed a bill to stop blocking the Telegram messenger. This was reported by the Kommersant edition, which had at its disposal the corresponding document^[42].

According to the information provided by the source, the draft bill on Tuesday, April 21, was sent to Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, as well as to Ministry of Digital Development of the Russian Federation. The department confirmed the receipt of the document, but refrained from any comments.

According to the initiators of the bill, Telegram, despite the blocking, is widely used by many government services, including the operational headquarters of the governments of Moscow and the Moscow region to inform about the current situation with the coronavirus. In addition, in most cases, the messenger functions without problems in Runet and enjoys well-deserved popularity among Russian users. All this casts doubt on the feasibility of blocking Telegram.

"Further declarative blocking of the messenger, thus, damages not its development, but the prestige of the state power of the Russian Federation," the authors of the bill note, expressing confidence that their proposal will receive wide support from State Duma deputies. However, according to experts interviewed by Kommersant, the likelihood of such a development of events is close to zero, and the prospects for adopting an initiative in parliament are extremely vague.

Yandex.Money launched transfers through Telegram

On March 16, 2020, it became known that Telegram users were able to send money transfers to other people through Yandex.Money. The messenger now recognizes the card number among the text of the message. Read more here.

The creator of the Telegram channel in Russia was detained for extorting 800 thousand rubles from an official

On February 13, 2020, it became known about the detention of blogger Dmitry Sviridov on suspicion of extorting money from a representative of the administration of the city of Korolev near Moscow. According to the REN TV channel, Sviridov was detained in a Moscow cafe as part of an operational-search event. Read more here.

2019

The head of Roskomnadzor Zharov began to use Telegram

At the end of December 2019, it became known that Alexander Zharov began to use Telegram. As you know, it was Roskomnadzor, which he heads, who initiated the blocking of the messenger. Read more here.

Roskomnadzor distributed Telegram blocking equipment to operators

In mid-September 2019, it became known that Roskomnadzor distributed equipment to telecommunications operators to block Telegram and other Internet resources prohibited in Russia. Two sources in the telecom told Reuters about this.

According to one of them, testing will take place in Tyumen on real users. According to the results of the tests, which will last until the end of September 2019, it is planned to understand how the devices work, what failures there are, etc.

The new blocking equipment was produced by "РДП.ру." 15% of this company belongs to Rostelecom. In March 2019, it was reported that the RDP.RU 's decision to block prohibited resources was recognized as the most effective during a laboratory experiment.

Representatives of telecom operators declined to comment. Roskomnadzor did not respond to the agency's request. The "РДП.ру" said that they do not know where the testing is taking place.

Earlier in 2019, the head of Roskomnadzor, Alexander Zharov , in an interview with RIA Novosti, said that Roskomnadzor was working on new tools to completely block Telegram. He noted that he would be able to name the cost and characteristics of the equipment in October.

By September 2019, the messenger is still available to users, despite the fact that Roskomnadzor blocks Telegram by court order due to the messenger's refusal to transfer  encryption keys to the FSB.

On November 1, 2019, a law on "ensuring the safe and sustainable functioning" of the Internet in Russia will enter into force. The law obliges operators to establish technical means on their networks that will limit access   to resources prohibited on the territory of the Russian Federation.  These include the DPI (Deep Packet Inspection) traffic filtering system. Testing of equipment for blocking resources in Tyumen will probably take place within the framework of this law.^[43]

Supreme Court rejects Telegram cassation appeal

On February 1, 2019, it became known that the Supreme Court rejected Telegram's cassation appeal in the case of blocking the messenger in Russia.

Roskomnadzor began blocking Telegram due to the fact that the company refused to fulfill the requirement to transfer keys to the FSB to decrypt user messages. The decision was supported by the appellate instance. The Presidium of the Moscow City Court also rejected the cassation appeal of Telegram lawyers.

The messenger's lawyers appealed all the decisions of the Russian courts regarding Telegram to the European Court of Human Rights.

The founder of Telegram, Pavel Durov, said that he did not plan to transfer the information requested by law enforcement agencies, and also emphasized that it was technically impossible to provide the keys for decoding the message^[44].

Telegram audience by country and region of Russia

At the beginning of 2019, most Telegram users live in Iran, Malaysia and Uzbekistan.

2018

Roskomnadzor is ready to unblock Telegram with the consent of the FSB

Representatives of Roskomnadzor announced at the end of August their readiness to unblock Telegram if the Federal Security Service recognizes the changes made to the privacy policy by fulfilling the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation. This was reported by the TASS news agency.

"According to

the decision of the Tagansky District Court of Moscow of April 13, 2018, restriction of access on the territory of Russia to Internet resources, the functioning of which is provided by Telegram Messenger Limited Partnership, is carried out before the specified organizer of information distribution on the Internet fulfills the obligation to submit to the federal executive body in the field of information security, necessary to decode received, transmitted, delivered and (or) processed electronic messages, "the press service of the ILV explained

.

Thus, the decision to comply with the requirements of the legislation will be made by the FSB. If there is a positive decision, Roskomnadzor is ready to start unblocking, the department noted.

ILV asked to change the Telegram code to obtain encryption keys

Before the start of blocking Telegram in Russia, the FSB and Roskomnadzor tried for a year to convince the leadership of Telegram to change the architecture of the messenger and provide keys for decrypting user correspondence. According to the departments, the company has a technical opportunity for this. This was announced in June 2018 by a representative of Roskomnadzor during the consideration of the complaint of Telegram representatives against the decision of the Tagansky District Court to block the service in Russia.

"The FSB and Roskomnadzor have been trying for a year to encourage Telegram to change the architecture of the messenger. We believe that the structure of any messenger can be changed to be brought in accordance with Russian law. Therefore, we believe that Telegram has the technical ability to provide keys for decryption, "the TASS representative of the supervisory service quotes a statement.

Putin spoke out against blocking Telegram

At the annual Direct Line with, Vladimir Putin the President, Russia answering questions from viewers, commented on the situation as a result of attempts to Roskomnadzor block the Telegram messenger^[45]

'I'm very aware of the situation around the Telegram. But I am worried about the safety of people in my place. I myself worked in the special services and I know: it is easiest to ban, it is harder to find civilized solutions. I will convince my colleagues to follow this path, "the president said.

The same, according to him, applies to the possibility of banning YouTube and Instagram in Russia. Putin said that Russia is not going to close popular social networks and Internet resources. In his opinion, law enforcement officers should look for such ways to combat terrorism that will not be to the detriment of freedom on the Internet. He intends to encourage the security forces not to restrict this freedom. The president proposes to practice the use of various tools, not blocking them.

Roskomnadzor demanded that Apple remove Telegram from the AppStore

Roskomnadzor sent a letter to Apple demanding to stop distributing the Telegram messenger through the App Store, as well as sending its service push notifications to Russian users.

"In order to avoid possible actions of Roskomnadzor to disrupt the functioning of the above services, Apple, Inc. please inform us as soon as possible about the Company's further actions aimed at resolving these problematic issues," the letter says (spelling and punctuation preserved).

The head of the department, Alexander Zharov, added that Roskomnadzor will wait for a response from Apple "within a month," since we are talking about "a company with a high degree of bureaucracy," Interfax reports.

Roskomnadzor armed itself against Telegram with new technologies

The head of Roskomnadzor Alexander Zharov promised to continue to introduce new technical solutions to block Telegram in Russia. As Zharov told Interfax reporters on the sidelines of SPIEF 2018, the department already has certain technical solutions at its disposal, ready for implementation^[46].

What kind of decisions are in question, the head of Roskomnadzor did not specify, but the regulator will no longer block the subnets of any companies. Now Roskomnadzor "works pointwise" without harm to "respectable resources."

According to Zharov, a number of companies have already taken appropriate steps to deprive Telegram of the opportunity to bypass the blocking. For example, Microsoft it no longer provides the messenger with the ability to use the configuration file of its Microsoft Download service. Telegram has stopped providing its IP addresses. Google In addition, a dialogue continues on Telegram. Amazon Negotiations with the company are not going as quickly as we would like, and it is too early to talk about the results, but "we are patient people," Zharov said.

During the hunt for Telegram, the ILV blocked 19 million IP addresses, in the hours of Google, Amazon, Microsoft

Main article [[Censorship (control) on the Internet. Russian Experience]

According to the head of Diphost, at the moment, in connection with the blocking of Telegram, about 18 million IP addresses are included in the register. In particular, address pools belonging to cloud services Amazon, Google, Microsoft and others were blocked.

Roskomnadzor blocked subnets OVH, Hetzner, Online.net, Microsoft, etc.:

• 18.236.0.0/15 - Amazon.com, Inc.
• 54.64.0.0/13 - Amazon Technologies Inc.
• 23.251.128.0/19 - Google LLC
• 174.138.0.0/17 - DigitalOcean, LLC
• 188.166.0.0/17 - Digital Ocean, Inc.
• 159.203.0.0/16 - DigitalOcean, LLC
• 128.199.0.0/16 - DigitalOcean Cloud
• 159.65.0.0/16 - DigitalOcean, LLC
• 52.32.0.0/16 - Amazon Technologies Inc.
• 54.212.0.0/15 - Amazon.com, Inc.
• 18.218.0.0/16 - Amazon Technologies Inc.
• 13.230.0.0/15 - Amazon Data Services Japan
• 35.176.0.0/15 - Amazon Data Services UK
• 195.154.0.0/17 - Iliad Entreprises Customers
• 51.136.0.0/15 - Microsoft Limited UK
• 46.101.128.0/17 - Digital Ocean, Inc.
• 185.166.212.0/23 - Clouding.io Virtual Machine Hosting
• 178.63.0.0/16 - Hetzner Online GmbH
• 51.15.0.0/16 - Online.net Dedicated Servers NL
• 91.121.0.0/16 - OVH SAS
• 18.204.0.0/14 - Amazon Technologies Inc.

On April 21-22, Roskomnadzor blocked several IP addresses, Google follows from an unofficial copy of the registry upload, which Roskomnadzor transfers to telecom operators to block sites. Access is restricted to IP addresses 74.125.131.101 and 64.233.165.106. According to the ipinfo.io service, they belong to Google. According to the general director of the Diphost provider Philip Kulin, about 60 IP addresses of the site are blocked in total google.com. A malfunction of the Google search engine on April 22 is observed in several cities of Russia, according to data from the Downdetector service, which tracks the work of popular Internet resources. Problems in the work of the search engine began at about one in the morning on. To Moscow The search engine site did not open in 69% of users, another 30% reported that they could not log into their accounts.

By noon on April 17, in the unloading of the blacklist Roskomnadzor that controls the blocking of resources with illegal content by telecom operators, the number of blocked IP addresses exceeded 4,500,000. Of these, a million are blocked subnets of the company (Amazon 52.58.0.0/15, 18.196.0.0/15, 18.194.0.0/15 and 35.156.0.0/14 were entered into the registry simultaneously, later subnets 18.184.0.0/15 and 54.160.0.0/12 were additionally entered into the registry) providing cloud service, and AWS more than one and a half million - companies Google and holdings (Alphabet subnets 35.192.0.0/12 and 35.184.0.0/13, a little later - 35.224.0.0/12).

In one day on April 16, 2018, Roskomnadzor blocked in Russia about 0.04% of all IP addresses of the IPv4 space (a total of 2³² addresses). For the second - the same amount.

As a result of these actions, in less than two days from the beginning of Telegram blocking, such large companies as Microsoft (Xbox), including pages with an officially distributed ON company (http://software-download.microsoft.com/), Evernote a popular and compliant enciphering messenger with key transfer legislation, Viber SkyEng English school, "Bird" courier delivery service, payment service Cloudpayments and numerous proxies - and - and VPNservers services. It was also reported about failures in the work of banks from the top 20, private clinics, gateways. 3-D Secure

According to the head of the supervisory authority, Alexander Zharov, "there is a struggle between armor and shell," which has led to the inaccessibility of not only communication providers and hosting services, but also legitimate services and products of numerous companies, both Russian and foreign.

Qrator Labs notifies you about the need to monitor the state of your own services and the possible ingress of used IP addresses into blocked subnets - there is no technical solution to this problem, except for changing the used IP address. In the situation of further blocking of subnets of large providers, the problem can trigger the'domino effect' and affect services indirectly related to blocked subnets. If subnets such as GitHub, GitLab, DigitalOcean and many others get blocked, the infrastructure of open-source modules, applications and extensions used by developers when creating their own systems and applications will be disrupted.

Telegram bypassed blocking in Russia in a new way that cannot be banned

Initially, Telegram bypassed Telegram blocking Russia using the company's IP addresses, Amazon but Roskomnadzor blocked more than half a million of them in advance in order to prevent the service from working for the sake of fulfilling Russian legislation. Nevertheless, the administration of the messenger found a way out of this situation. Now it is simply useless to block individual IP addresses, because the service will continue to work^[47]

The Telegram application for all platforms has a built-in service push DC_Update, which is used to update the address of the data center with which communication is carried out. At normal times, it is used to increase stability and speed up the sending/receiving of messages, but it can also be used to bypass locks, which the messenger administration decided to do. Previously, no one has ever used this method.

The push system DC_Update works so that the request does not come from the Telegram server, which is blocked in Russia, but with the server of Apple, Google and Microsoft. Every time the push is updated, and this happens constantly, the application can secretly receive the addresses of the new messenger servers from everyone. To block this workaround, Roskomnadzor will have to block tens of millions of IP addresses, which will lead to complete isolation of the entire Russian Internet from the world.

Even if suddenly, by some miracle, Roskomnadzor will be able to find out the IP addresses accessed by Google, Apple and Microsoft using DC_Update, then it will still not block them, because in this case all third-party applications, including WhatsApp, Viber and others, will stop working correctly. The web version of the Telegram messenger does not use this push due to restrictions, so it will remain blocked forever.

Court rules to immediately block Telegram in Russia

The Tagansky District Court of Moscow decided to restrict access to the Telegram service in Russia. This was stated by judge Yulia Smolina, RBC correspondent reports from the meeting^[48] in^[49].

The court also granted the petition of Roskomnadzor for the immediate entry into force of the decision to block the messenger. Now Roskomnadzor must send a court decision to telecom operators indicating the need to take measures to restrict access to the service. The domain names of telegram.org, web.telegram.org, t.me and IP addresses of Telegram servers can be entered in the registry of blocked pages. After that, providers will have to restrict access to messenger resources within 24 hours from the moment the registry is updated (updated daily at 09:00 and 21:00 Moscow time).

Businessman and programmer Pavel Durov has published detailed instructions for Telegram users on how to continue to stay in touch in the popular application. According to him, the messenger will use built-in methods for bypassing locks that do not require actions from users, but it does not guarantee the availability of the service without using a VPN.

The Tagansky Court of Moscow ruled to block Telegram on the territory of the Russian Federation. What users should keep in mind:

• Telegram will use built-in methods to bypass locks that do not require action from users, but 100% availability of the service without VPN is not guaranteed.
• In the first hours of blocking, third-party VPN/Proxy services can be overloaded and are likely to work slowly.
• Regardless of the blocking, Telegram will retain the ability to centrally send notifications to all Russian users, informing about the development of the situation.

Important: Do not uninstall or reinstall Telegram when there are communication problems. Try to download Telegram updates in a timely manner in the AppStore or Google Play.

Roskomnadzor gave Telegram 15 days to transfer FSB encryption keys

On March 20, 2018, Roskomnadzor sent a notification to the Telegram messenger about the need to transfer information to the FSB to decode received, transmitted, delivered and processed electronic messages. This is stated in the message^[50] of^[51].

According to the law, the requirement is given 15 days from the date of receipt of the notification.

The representative of Roskomnadzor explained to RBC that in case of failure to fulfill the obligations provided for in Art. 10.1 149-FZ, the service will send a statement of claim to the court demanding that Telegram Messenger Limited restrict access to Internet resources in Russia.

$10 million from the founder of Wimm-Bill-Dunn and $17 million from the director of QIWI

One of the founders of Wimm-Bill-Dann and a member of the board bureau of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs David Yakobashvili invested Pavel Durov in Telegram during a closed pre-ICO held in January, Yakobashvili himself told RBC. "Yes, I invested $10 million of my personal funds in Telegram in January. Perhaps I will participate in the ICO Telegram, which will be held in March, has not yet decided. The company is interesting, developing, their team is good, so I decided to invest, "he said.

Another Russian Telegram investor was the founder and CEO of QIWIolonin Sergey - the amount of his investments amounted to $17 million. "In the next round, ICO plans to make investments in the amount of up to $10 million," Solonin said.

2017

Due to the threat of blocking, Telegram has become the fastest growing messenger

From May to December 2017, user interest in the Telegram messenger showed the highest growth compared to other similar services popular in Russia, according to the research company ​SimilarWeb, prepared at the request of RBC^[52] to the ^[53] of ^[54].

If in May Telegram from Google Play (for the nine months of 2017, the share of Android in the smartphone segment in Russia was 88%) was downloaded 833.2 thousand times, then in November more than 1.682 million installations were recorded: from May 1 to December 1, the increase in the number of downloads amounted to 168%. The share of active messenger users has almost doubled during this period (considered as the share of application users per day of the total number of all users of devices running on the Android operating system in Russia) - from 3.17 to 5.51%, which made it possible to overtake, for example, Skype (3.9% in November).

For comparison, WhatsApp, the most popular communication application in Russia, was downloaded 2.7 million times in May, and 3.8 million in November (the active audience during the same time increased from 29.97 to 33.27%).

The increased popularity of Telegram in recent months in Russia is also confirmed by the App Annie ratings for downloads. From October to December 2017, Telegram was one of the top 3 apps for communication in both the App Store and Google Play, and in June and November it was at the top of the download lines among all App Store apps. ​

Telegram lawyers appealed to the UN for protection from the actions of the FSB

Agora's lawyers, who represent Telegram's interests, appealed to the UN for support in a dispute with the Russian authorities over the disclosure of encryption keys for correspondence. Member of the association Damir Gainutdinov sent a corresponding letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of speech David Kaye^[55] appealed^[56].

The letter says^[57]that Telegram in Russia was fined for refusing to transfer encryption keys to the FSB. Therefore, Agora asks Kaye to recommend to the Russian government "to refrain from expanding the practice of arbitrary interference in the right of citizens to freedom of expression, privacy and anonymity, including online."

Now the Russian authorities have a formal reason to block Telegram, as it violated the new requirements of the law "On Information" regarding instant messengers. According to lawyers, this contradicts the resolution of the UN General Assembly "The right to privacy in the digital era."

Agora also recalled that the encryption principle in Telegram does not allow messenger administrators to access the keys that are generated on users' devices. Gainutdinov compared the Telegram case to a lawsuit between the FBI and Apple when an American company refused to create a program to hack an iPhone.

The court upheld the fine

The Meshchansky Court of Moscow upheld the fine of 800 thousand rubles imposed on the Telegram messenger for refusing to transfer the keys to user correspondence to the FSB.

"To refuse the

complaint of representatives of Telegram Messenger LLP, to recognize the decision of the magistrate as legal," the judge announced the decision.

Durov on the Telegram fine for 800 thousand rubles

Durov is ready to close Telegram in Russia and Iran

The founder of the Telegram messenger and the VKontakte social network Pavel Durov announced his readiness to break both personal and business ties with countries in which he and his business are under pressure. In his Telegram channel, Durov answered numerous user questions regarding the charges brought in Russia and Iran. According to Durov, protecting user privacy is still one of the priorities of the messenger development team, and if the governments of any countries are going to put pressure on him personally and on Telegram in particular, then he is ready to close the service in these countries, depriving them of such an opportunity.

FSB requires decoding keys

On September 27, it became known that the FSB in July demanded that Telegram provide them with keys to decode user messages. The service had an obligation to provide keys when it registered in the register of information distributors.

Pavel Durov agreed to enter Telegram into the register of Roskomnadzor

Durov quoted the head of Roskomnadzor, Alexander Zharov, as saying that "there is no question that there will be access to user correspondence," and all the supervisory authority expects is the provision of information about Telegram.

"Registration data about the Telegram publishing company is no secret and is available to anyone in open sources," Durov wrote and gave a link by which they can be viewed.

The head of Roskomnadzor appeals to Pavel Durov

The heads of Roskomnadzor Alexander Zharov personally contact the founder of the Telegram messenger Pavel Durov with a demand to include the messenger in the register of information dissemination organizers (ARI). Zharov announced this in June 2017 to the Interfax agency.

The head of Roskomnadzor added that his department is waiting for a response from Telegram about the provision of information necessary to include the service in the ARI register. There is no answer yet, in connection with which Zharov intends to contact Durov directly within a week^{[58] [59]}

Durov responded to the appeal, calling the possible blocking "sabotage of state interests." "As soon as Telegram is blocked, the correspondence of Russian officials, their communication with friends and relatives and other sensitive data WhatsAppViber through/will go to the American-controlled Apple Google iCloud/Drive clouds," he wrote.

Notes