Popular encrypted messaging app Telegram faces limited reach in the country as Russian regulators force Apple to block Telegram on iOS.
Founder and CEO Pavel Durov said that Telegram on iOS may be experiencing some issues with certain features like stickers after the iOS 11.4 update which was launched at this week. This is because the updates to the app are being prevented globally, he said.
Russian regulators ordered Apple to remove Telegram from the App Store altogether.
This also prevented Telegram to issue a GDPR update to comply with the European regulations, said Durov.
Durov confirmed that the same issue doesn't apply to Telegram versions in Google Play and the Windows store.
Apple stopped approving Telegram for iOS updates globally 1,5 months ago after Russia ordered a block on Telegram. More here – https://t.co/yarcIrV2Bh
— Pavel Durov (@durov) May 31, 2018
Russia has had a hard time in banning Telegram from the country.
Telegram is built with domain fronting technology which allows it to jump from one IP or domain to another, Russia has a hard time in blocking Telegram. Such attempts had crippled the country's internet.
"Telegram is accessible in Russia due to the built-in anti-censorship tools,” Durov said.
Because of this, the Russian communications regulator Roskomnadzor (RKN) made a formal request to Apple to stop distributing the app, and also to stop enabling push notifications for those who already have the app downloaded in Russia.
