Ukrainian military and officials restricted from using Telegram

(Patria) - The National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine announced yesterday that it will ban the use of Telegram, a popular messaging app founded by Russian Pavel Durov, on official electronic devices of most of its soldiers and officials, suspecting that Russian services have access to message exchanges.

"A decision was made to ban the installation and use of Telegram on official devices of state officials, military personnel, employees of the security and defense sector, as well as companies managing critical infrastructure," the Council's statement said.

- The military often uses it to discuss confidential work matters. This is a major source of information leaks because Russians hack Telegram very easily - a high-ranking Ukrainian security official, who wished to remain anonymous, told AFP.

Employees who are required to use Telegram as part of their duties, especially for distributing official press releases, are not covered by this rule, the Council clarified, as the app is the main communication channel between the military and public bodies.

This decision was made during a meeting on "threats to national security" posed by the app, added the Council, an institution under the authority of the Ukrainian presidency.

Head of Ukrainian military intelligence Kyrylo Budanov presented "substantiated information" showing that Russian intelligence services "have access to personal correspondence of Telegram users, including deleted messages, as well as their personal data," the Council stated.

Representatives of Ukrainian security services also claim that Moscow uses Telegram for cyber attacks or geolocating users.