Ukraine has enforced a prohibition on the usage of Telegram by its government representatives, military figures, and key personnel working in defense and essential infrastructure, citing grave national security vulnerabilities.
The directive was unveiled by the National Coordination Centre for Cybersecurity (NCCC) through a post on Facebook.
“I have long supported freedom of expression, yet the dilemma surrounding Telegram is not a matter of free speech, but rather a profound national security concern,” remarked Kyrylo Budanov, chief of Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence.
The National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of Ukraine stated that Telegram is being “aggressively exploited by adversaries” to instigate cyber offensives, disseminate phishing attempts and harmful software, monitor users’ locations, and accumulate sensitive intelligence to aid the Russian military in targeting Ukraine’s key assets with drones and missiles.
In response, the app’s use has been strictly forbidden on official devices owned by state employees, military officers, security and defense personnel, as well as individuals associated with critical infrastructure operations.
It should be emphasized that this restriction does not apply to personal devices, nor does it impact individuals who must use Telegram as part of their official responsibilities.
In a response shared with Reuters, Telegram asserted that it has not supplied any user data to any nation, including Russia, emphasizing that messages deleted from the platform are permanently erased without the possibility of retrieval.
This development arrives shortly after the arrest and subsequent release on bail of Telegram’s CEO in France, connected to an ongoing probe into the app’s involvement in cases of child pornography, narcotics trafficking, and fraudulent activities.
