The Kerala police told the Kerala High Court that it is nearly impossible for it to trace users on messaging service Telegram because of the “anonymity” and “security” the app provides, the Times of India reported. The police argued that Telegram made it difficult for it to gather users’ account details as users can use the service by using just a user ID, while hiding their mobile number, unlike WhatsApp, the report said. As the phone number is hidden, law enforcement agencies cannot collect account details from service providers either. The app has become a “safe haven” to carry out “illegal activities,” due to the anonymity it provides, the police reportedly argued. Telegram should be made to abide by regional laws to operate in India, and a system should be created so that the platform can respond to queries on criminal matters, it further said. Kerala Police’s filed its arguments in an affidavit in response to a petition by Athena Solomon, that seeks to block user access to Telegram and to delete all pornography channels, groups and bots on the platform, the report said. Kerala Police Cyberdome and the state’s DGP are among the respondents in the case, along with the Union of India, government of Kerala, Department of Telecommunications, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and the official in-charge. Anonymity is a big concern for the police: Users on the app can conceal their identities from admins of groups and send texts, videos or other files “anonymously,” the police said…
