VChK‑OGPU, a Russian Telegram channel posting security insights, disappears. Admins claim censorship by Kremlin; Telegram denies

VChK-OGPU, an anonymous Telegram channel that rose to prominence in 2019, built a reputation as a prolific and often provocative source of leaks and commentary about Russia’s powerful security services. Claiming insider access, it regularly published messages laced with alleged high-level intelligence: some of it unverifiable, some of it later corroborated.

A typical post from July 2019, for instance, claimed: “Sources say that since morning on Lubyanka they have been discussing the fact that the head of the directorate for Moscow and Moscow region, Colonel General Alexey Dorofeyev, was dismissed today. But nothing has been officially announced yet. We are waiting for confirmation.” No confirmation came. Blending factual reporting with speculation, rumour and at times suspected sponsored content, the channel attracted over a million subscribers by 2024.

In the early hours of April 7, the channel vanished. Telegram’s press office told Mediazona that the deletion was carried out by the channel’s owner, possibly due to “unauthorized access.” The company said it is conducting an internal review.

However, a post on the channel’s reserve account disputes this, claiming instead that Telegram itself removed the channel, allegedly under pressure from Russian authorities. “We can state with full responsibility that there was no unauthorized access,” VChK-OGPU admins wrote. “Telegram is now attempting to conceal its clear cooperation with Russian authorities.” The authors said they had sent dozens of inquiries to Telegram’s support team but received no response.

Telegram’s claim that VChK-OGPU was deleted by its owner is undercut by other admins who say large channels can’t be easily removed. Kompromat GROUP tested this by trying to delete one of their own big channels, and Telegram allegedly blocked it, citing too many subscribers.

Adding to the speculation, Roskomnadzor, Russian censorship agency, claimed to TASS that more than 373,000 publications and channels have been removed from Telegram at its request. Roskomnadzor stated that it had repeatedly demanded that VChK-OGPU posts and the channel itself be taken down for spreading false and extremist information. While Roskomnadzor stopped short of explicitly claiming responsibility for the deletion, the framing of the statement was designed to imply a connection.

In December 2024, a Moscow court fined Telegram 4 million rubles (over $46,000 at the current rate) for failing to comply with takedown requests from the Prosecutor General’s Office. That ruling cited 22 cases of disputed content, including VChK-OGPU, Islamist imagery related to a prison hostage situation and calls for anti-Putin protests. At least 10 Telegram channels were deleted or changed ownership following the decision.

VCHK and the Kremlin

In recent years, VChK-OGPU’s focus shifted, with the channel increasingly reporting on political repression and the war in Ukraine, often taking a critical stance. While the reasons for this shift remain unclear, in July 2024, Russia’s justice ministry officially designated VChK-OGPU a “foreign agent”—a label typically used to discredit government critics. Officials accused the channel of undermining the Russian military’s image and opposing key state policies.

Its administrators alleged that an investigation into an attempted poisoning of its founder began in an unnamed EU country last April. They claim the founder was hospitalised in August with symptoms consistent with poisoning, though no details emerged, and the founder’s identity remains undisclosed.

The Russian government, however, has named two alleged administrators: former Rosbalt journalist Alexander Shvarev, who received asylum in Latvia in 2020, and Alisher Abdullaev. Both have been charged in absentia in Russia with extortion and defamation over posts targeting billionaire Alisher Usmanov.

In a related case, PR consultant Alexander Gusov, previously linked by state media to the VChK-OGPU, was arrested in 2023 for allegedly extorting another businessman. While TASS claimed he co-founded the channel, VChK-OGPU has denied any connection. After 18 months in pre-trial detention, Gusov was released under a travel ban.

Telegram and the Kremlin

While Telegram previously built its brand on resisting censorship, even facing and successfully defying a nationwide ban in Russia in 2018, recent moves by the company have prompted concern. Foundrer Pavel Durov has acknowledged a shift toward cooperation with law enforcement after his arrest in France, particularly when requests follow the proper legal procedures. In 2024, Telegram began responding to more data requests from EU countries.

Cooperation with Russian law enforcement remains ambiguous. In a separate ruling this year, a Bashkortostan court found that the FSB was unable to obtain user data from Telegram in an extremism case, as the company only shares user data in terrorism-related investigations. Telegram has stated it will only provide an IP address and phone number if ordered to do so by a court in cases involving suspected terrorists.

Despite this, Telegram’s neutrality with regard to Russia is in question. In March, the platform’s Wallet bot for crypto transactions has frozen the funds of users added to Russia’s extremist and terrorist list, a designation often used against anti-war or critical figures. The bot, tied to a financial network linked to Russian businessman Dmitry Yeremeyev, refused to return funds even after extended contact with users.