(13 January 2026 | Source: publication "Our Gazette")
A verdict has been handed down in the Kostanay Region in a case concerning the illegal routing of international telephone traffic disguised as domestic. The court concluded that the actions of a technician from Kaztechnosvyaz LLP posed a threat to the national security of Kazakhstan and caused damage to the largest telecom operators.
A verdict has been handed down in the Kostanay Region in a case concerning the illegal routing of international telephone traffic disguised as domestic. The court concluded that the actions of a technician from Kaztechnosvyaz LLP posed a threat to the national security of Kazakhstan and caused damage to the largest telecom operators.
WHAT DECISION DID THE COURT MAKE
According to the verdict, as reported by the publication "Our Gazette", the court found Vladimir Safronov guilty under Article 210, Part 3, Clause 2 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan ("Creation, use, or distribution of malicious computer programs and software products"). He was sentenced to 7 years' imprisonment and 5 years' ban on activities related to programming.
In connection with the amnesty timed to the 30th anniversary of the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the sentence was reduced by one-fifth. The final sentence amounted to 5 years, 7 months, and 6 days. The convicted man will serve his time in a minimum-security facility. Time spent in custody from 26 December 2024 was counted towards the sentence at a rate of one day for every two.
WHAT WAS THE CHARGE
According to the prosecution, Safronov acted deliberately and as part of a group of individuals by prior conspiracy with unidentified persons. The investigation claimed that he made changes to the hardware and software system of Kaztechnosvyaz LLP — a company that uses communication lines and technical infrastructure for routing telephone traffic.
This, according to the court's findings, allowed international traffic from Russia to be routed bypassing Kazakhstan's licensed telecom operators, and also allowed service information about subscribers of the Republic of Kazakhstan to be transferred to a foreign company.
The court established that modification of subscriber numbers did not occur, but there was distortion of information and substitution of IP addresses. In practice, calls from subscribers in Kazakhstan to Kazakh numbers were made when the user was outside the country.
WHY THE COURT CONSIDERED THE GUILT PROVEN
Judge Anara Shaimurunova stated that the defendant's guilt was confirmed by a body of evidence, including the findings of three expert examinations. They established the fact of the company's connection to a foreign telecom operator and the possibility of routing international traffic bypassing the licensed networks of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
The defence's arguments about falsification of evidence and the illegal initiation of the pre-trial investigation were dismissed by the court as unfounded. The version suggesting that changes were made to the server after its seizure was also refuted by expert opinion.
FINANCIAL CONSEQUENCES
The court granted all civil claims of the aggrieved telecom operators, the source reports. Safronov is obliged to compensate the damage to Kazakhtelecom JSC, Kcell JSC, MobileTelecomService LLP (brands Altel and Tele2), and KaR-Tel JSC (Beeline). The total amount, including state duty, exceeds 35 million tenge.
During the court proceedings, it was noted that no property acquired through criminal means was identified in the convicted man's possession — nothing was subject to confiscation.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
The verdict has not yet come into legal force. Lawyer Talgat Nurkeshev told the publication "Our Gazette" that the defence intends to file an appeal.