Russia wants mandatory backdoor in WhatsApp and Telegram

There is a proposal at the Russian Duma to oblige all messaging apps to offer the Russian secret service possibilities to decrypt messages, on pain of a fine. This is part of anti-terror legislation.

The State Duma wants apps such as WhatsApp, Telegram and Viber to be fined up to 1 million rubles, about 14 thousand euros, if they do not meet the requirement to build in a back door through which the secret service can read messages. It’s not just about messaging services, but probably also about social networks and email services, writes Tass news agency.

According to the proposal, the service must be able to read all information, including received, sent, delivered and processed communications. Citizens, companies and institutions can also be fined, ranging from three thousand to one million rubles.

The bill has already been approved by the Russian Security Commission. Senator Elena Mizulina says the bill should become law because “teenagers are brainwashed in closed groups of the internet to kill police officers” and all “protected by encryption”. She even goes so far as to state that messages may need to be filtered beforehand, according to Currenttime.