Telegram's Links to Russian FSB Revealed in Investigation

Investigation into Telegram's Russian Ties

• 🔍 A joint investigation by Important Stories and OCCRP reveals potential entanglement between Telegram's infrastructure and Russian intelligence interests.
• 💡 Despite its reputation for privacy, the app's security is questioned due to its connections.

Vladimir Vidanev: The Central Figure

• 👤 The investigation identifies Vladimir Vidanev, a Russian engineer, as the person in control of Telegram's back-end network.
• 💼 Vidanev is described in legal filings as Telegram's de facto CFO and authorized to act on founder Pavel Durov's behalf.
• ⚠️ Alarmingly, Vidanev's own companies also serve the FSB, Russia's spy service.

Risks to User Information

• 📈 Roman Anin, author of the investigation, states it's highly probable that user information can reach the FSB.
• 🚨 Cases of Russian activists facing charges due to messages sent via Telegram bots highlight these risks.
• 🔑 If one individual controls the entire infrastructure and cooperates with secret services, the app becomes very risky.

Encryption and Durov's Claims

• 🔒 Telegram has never been fully end-to-end encrypted, contrary to founder Pavel Durov's claims.
• 🔑 Telegram employees can access messages stored on servers with their secret keys.

Durov's Choices and Cooperation

• 🤔 Pavel Durov could have chosen alternative providers, but instead entrusted infrastructure control to Vidanev, who cooperates with the FSB.
• 🇷🇺 Russian businessmen in telecom are obliged to cooperate with secret services, including providing access to surveillance equipment like SORM.
• 🤝 Vidanev admitted to having SORM in his Russian companies and constant connection with an FSB officer.

Evidence and User Advice

• 🕵️ The investigation began after discovering Durov's frequent, undisclosed trips to Russia and his company's infrastructure there.
• 🗣️ Vidanev confirmed the technical possibility to access data and cooperate with the FSB, though he denied sharing Telegram data.
• ⚠️ Anin advises users to not use Telegram, citing Durov's past lies and Vidanev's cooperation with the FSB.
• 📍 The investigation suggests that while messages might not be read directly online, unique identifiers in unencrypted headers can reveal user locations and communication patterns, potentially leading to decryption.