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Ban Lifted on Telegram Messaging App in Iraq After Data Leak Concerns Addressed
Iraq has decided to lift its ban on the popular Telegram messaging app this Sunday.
The ban was imposed earlier this week over security worries about the leaking of data from official state bodies and private citizens.
Telegram is widely used in Iraq for messaging and sharing news and content. Some channels on it contained large amounts of private data of Iraqis including names, addresses and family ties.
In a statement, the telecoms ministry said it decided to end the ban after Telegram responded to the security authorities' requests. The authorities had called on the company to reveal the entities that leaked the citizen data.
The company also "expressed its full readiness to communicate with the relevant authorities," the statement said.
A Telegram spokesperson confirmed that their moderators had removed several channels sharing personal data, which violates their terms of service. However, they denied that any private user data was provided to the Iraqi authorities.
Last week, the ministry had said Telegram did not comply with requests to shut down platforms leaking data of state institutions and citizens. Lifting of the ban indicates satisfactory measures have now been taken to address the data leak concerns.
Iraq has lifted its ban on the Telegram messaging app imposed earlier this week over data leak worries.
The ban was removed after Telegram took down channels sharing private citizen data and communicated with Iraqi authorities.
Telegram denies handing over any user data to Iraq and says sharing private info violates its policies.
Source: REUTERS