WEB DESK
A Moscow court today ruled to block the popular messaging app Telegram in Russia, after it refused to give state security services access to private conversations.
The Roskomnadzor telecom watchdog, which brought the case, had earlier demanded the service be blocked as soon as the verdict is announced. Telegram’s self-exiled Russian founder Pavel Durov has long said he will reject any attempt by the country security’s services to gain backdoor access to the app.
The free application, which lets people exchange messages, photos and videos in groups of up to 5,000 people, has attracted more than 200 million users since its launch in 2013.
Telegram is especially popular among political activists of all stripes, but has also been used by militants