A Better Telegram: Max (imum) Surveillance
August 27, 2025
No AI. Just a dinobaby working the old-fashioned way.
The super duper everything apps include many interesting functions. But one can spice up a messaging app with a bit of old-fashioned ingenuity. The newest “player” in the “secret” messaging game is not some knock off Silicon Valley service. The MAX app has arrived.
Reuters reported in “Russia Orders Sate-Backed MAX Messenger Ap, a WhatsApp Rival, Pre-Installed on Phones and Tablets.” (Did you notice the headline did not include Telegram?) The trusted news source says:
A Russian state-backed messenger application called MAX, a rival to WhatsApp that critics say could be used to track users, must be pre-installed on all mobile phones and tablets from next month, the Russian government said on Thursday. The decision to promote MAX comes as Moscow is seeking greater control over the internet space as it is locked in a standoff with the West over Ukraine, which it casts as part of an attempt to shape a new world order.
I like the inclusion of a reference to “a new world order.”
The trusted news source adds:
State media says accusations from Kremlin critics that MAX is a spying app are false and that it has fewer permissions to access user data than rivals WhatsApp and Telegram.
Yep, Telegram. Several questions:
- Are any of the companies supporting MAX providing services to Telegram?
- Were any of the technologists working on MAX associated with VKontakte or Telegram?
- Will other countries find the MAX mandated installation an interesting idea?
- How does MAX intersect with data captured from Russia-based telecom outfits and online service providers?
I can’t answer these questions, but I would think that a trusted news service would.
Stephen E Arnold, August 27, 2025
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