Azerbaijan to regulate activity of social networks

He said that the negotiations with these companies have already started.

"Most of them have reacted positively to this action of the regulatory body of the country,” he said.

"As it is known, people are actively using social networks and instant messengers in Azerbaijan,” he said. "Moreover, a number of them render services over the Internet. As a regulatory body, we believe that the companies engaged in mass collection of information in Azerbaijan must work in accordance with the country’s law about the personal data, that is, get a certificate. This certificate is issued by our ministry."

"Currently, the ministry is already negotiating with Viber, WhatsApp, Skype, social networks,” he said. "This practice is used not only in Azerbaijan but also in some European countries.”

"Every country certifies and regulates the activity of its instant messengers and social networks in accordance with its laws,” he said.

"Certainly, it is a fairly complex and painstaking work, which is often perceived as an alleged obstacle to their activities,” he said. "I can definitely say that it is not so, and never will be like that. These companies have a fairly extensive database of citizens' personal data, and we as the regulatory body should protect the rights of citizens in a virtual environment.”

Negotiations conducted with Viber, WhatsApp, Skype companies and social networks are conducted in a rather positive way, and many of them have already begun to study the legislation of Azerbaijan, the minister said.

"I believe that their activities will be certified, and those companies that provide communications services will have to get a license,” said Abbasov.