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The founder of the encrypted messaging app Telegram has come under pressure from Russia's Federal Security Service, with a demand the encryption keys for the app be provided to the agency.
Pavel Durov told The Moscow Times that he had registered the app with a government database in June after a threat to block the service came from the Russian media censor.
But he said he had not complied with a new law that makes it mandatory for websites and messaging applications to retain user data for six months beginning in 2018.
Earlier this year, Indonesia threatened a ban on Telegram, complaining that militants were using the app as a recruiting tool and to spread information on how to carry out terrorist attacks
Durov said Russia was “rushing to join Iran in filing charges against the Telegram management".
Iran has filed criminal charges against Durov, accusing him of allowing terrorists to communicate using Telegram.
“They seem to be unhappy because we won't comply with the unconstitutional ‘Yarovaya laws' and won't give them the encryption keys they wanted,” he said in an English-language post.
The laws in question are named after Russian parliamentary deputy Irina Yarovaya.
Apart from mandating local storage, they allow the FSB to access users’ messaging data without a court order.
Companies are also required to provide the FSB with encryption keys.
Durov published copies of the letters sent to him by the FSB, which indicate that the demand was first made on 14 July.
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has announced that laws would be promulgated before the end of the year to force companies that offer encrypted messaging apps to decrypt messages when asked to do so by law enforcement agencies.
