Telegram App Linked to Terrorism
A messaging app is facing criticism for being utilized as a platform for terrorists to spread their propaganda. Telegram has become a popular messaging service as it enables users to have secret chats by posting anonymously in secure, encrypted groups which nobody can decipher.
Terrorists, however, took advantage of this feature, making it a new promotional and recruitment platform for the Islamic State (ISIS). On Wednesday, the militant group posted a message on a public channel claiming responsibility for the Manchester suicide bombing which killed 22 people and injured 59 others.
The post justified the terror act as in retaliation for the bombings and airstrikes perpetrated by coalition forces in ISIS' self-declared capital of Mosul in Iraq. Another post by ISIS-sympathizing group Yaqeen Media threatened more attacks in U.K. using car bombs.
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Aside from spreading propaganda, ISIS is said to be using encrypted group chats and one-to-one messaging in Telegram to indoctrinate potential recruits and plot their operations. The app is thus criticized for its failure to remove terror groups despite repeated complaints.
But Telegram, which is used by over 100 million users, claims it "actively bans" ISIS content and takes down 70 Isis channels a day before they "reach traction." It also claims to have shut down nearly 2,500 ISIS channels and groups this month. However, it is overwhelmed by the sheer amount of dangerous activity.
In a blog entry, Telegram defended its focus on security as a means to protect its users' privacy. It explained how its security protocol works, using a distributed infrastructure or multiple data centers around the world. This means that decryption keys are split into parts and not kept in just one place.
Parties who wish to access data will have to secure court orders from different jurisdictions. It added that "Telegram can be forced to give up data only if an issue is grave and universal enough to pass the scrutiny of several different legal systems around the world."
