Can't be long before Vlad starts calling it the USSR again.... I'm just surprised Durov hasn't been "offered a cup of tea".
https://en.crimerussia.com/gromkie-d...king-process-/Russia starts Telegram blocking process
Roskomnadzor has launched the blocking procedure for Telegram in Russia. Telegram’s domain names and IP addresses have been added to the register of blocked websites, and telecommunications providers have been told to take measures to block access to them.
Under the current rules, providers will have to restrict access to Telegram resources within 24 hours from the day it was added to the register of blocked websites, which is updated twice a day.
On April 13, Tagansky Court considered the suit of Roskomnadzor and ruled to immediately block Telegram since the messenger refused to hand over its encryption keys to the special services, as required by the Russian law. "We understand that the information distributed through Telegram may violate the law, be used by terrorist and extremist organizations, pose a danger to the national security of the Russian Federation, as well as to the life and wellbeing of citizens, to the users of the network itself," Maria Smelyanskaya, the acting head of Roskomnadzor Legal Department stated in court.
After the court ruled that Telegram was to be blocked, Roskomnadzor chairman Alexander Zharov said that the messenger could be unblocked only after it complies with the law.
The FSB demanded that Telegram hand over its encryption keys in mid-July 2017. The company refused to provide the information, and the service founder, Pavel Durov, stated that the company would not comply with laws that violate privacy of its users and contradict the messenger’s values.
On March 20, 2018, the Supreme Court refused to satisfy Telegram's claim to recognize FSB's demand as unlawful. Durov said on the same day that he would not yield to the threats.