In 2014, Pavel Durov fled the country after allies of the Kremlin took control of the social networking site most know just as VK. Russia's intelligence agency had asked Durov to turn over the data of anti-Kremlin protesters. Durov refused to do so. If you initiate a Secret Chat, however, then these communications are end-to-end encrypted and are tied to the device you are using. That means itâs less convenient to access them across multiple platforms, but you are at far less risk of snooping. Back in the day, Secret Chats received some praise from the EFF, but the fact that its standard system isnât as secure earned it some criticism. If youâre looking for something that is considered more reliable by privacy advocates, then Signal is the EFFâs preferred platform, although that too is not without some caveats. "Someone posing as a Ukrainian citizen just joins the chat and starts spreading misinformation, or gathers data, like the location of shelters," Tsekhanovska said, noting how false messages have urged Ukrainians to turn off their phones at a specific time of night, citing cybersafety. "Your messages about the movement of the enemy through the official chatbot ⌠bring new trophies every day," the government agency tweeted.
from es
