Russia Seeks to Block ‘Darknet’ Technologies, Including Telegram’s Blockchain

A Russian government agency has requested contractor bids to find ways to block censorship-resistant internet technologies, like mesh networks. The list includes messaging app company Telegram’s yet-to-be-launched blockchain. 

The call for bids was published on March 3 by the General Radio Frequency Center, the agency controlling the use of radio frequencies in Russia, and first reported by the Russian-language cryptocurrency news outlet Forklog.  

According to the notice, the agency is looking for research on what technologies can be used to access restricted content, including content deemed extremist, beyond traditional internet protocols. 

The research should point at ways to block access to such tech, the agency told would-be contractors.

The list of such technologies in the document includes mesh networks, internet of things (IoT) protocols and protocols allowing anonymous browsing, including Invisible Internet Project (I2P), The Onion Router (TOR), Freenet, Zeronet,…