Telegram draws 25 million ‘new’ users in just three days after WhatsApp privacy policy change

As WhatsApp rolled out changes to its privacy terms, users diverted their interest to the encrypted messaging app Telegram. As a result, in just three days, Telegram registered around 25 million new users, according to its founder Pavel Durov. Durov said Telegram surpassed 500 million monthly active users mark in the first week of January but, more remarkably, 25 million new users joined the app in the last 72 hours alone following WhatsApp’s controversial privacy policy change.

“People no longer want to exchange their privacy for free services,” Durov wrote on his Telegram channel. Durov, however, did not take any names.