serious harm... to mass surveillance, isn't it? 👀
Discussion
Telegram is unencrypted by default. This is about the open drug and prostitution markets that Telegram facilitates. It has basically replaced dark markets on Tor for most of these things at this point.
Telegram encryption is indeed optional, and I understand their company structure doesn't make it easy for authority to request information.
But the issue IMHO, is the fact of targetting tools. Knife can kill, yet we use everyday to cook and eat. Telegram is a tool.
Markets exist because people want things. Therein lies the problem. There's little difference if a messaging app facilitates vice that exists. Large-scale drug cartels etc. should be visible and therefore feasible to police (see images of Myanmar's compund of trafficked slaves for example. I feel these problems are largely often unrelated.
Yes, of course. It would be much easier for them to investigate crimes in the future, if they wouldn't push everyone to fully E2EE comms.
However, with most of the industry moving to E2EE protocols, the peak value of a full takeout of unencrypted comms from Telegram is probably just about now.
Demanding backdoors in whilst using the same tech to build opaque systems and moats is disingenuous.
I was just saying that trying to outlaw the application of math and discreet comms is authoritarian and lazy.
But I agree that the peak value is in stripping away civil liberties. We are all N.Korea now.