Russia buying typewriters to avoid data leaks

The Russian agency responsible for Kremlin security is reportedly buying typewriters in an effort to avoid digital data leaks.

The country’s Federal Protective Service (FSO, from the Russian Federalnaya Sluzhba Okhrany) has placed an order for 20 typewriters on the state procurement website.

Russian newspaper Izvestia reports that the agency is willing to pay a sum of 486,540 roubles - about AU$16,000, or AU$820 for each typewriter.

The agency has not officially commented on why it wants the devices.

According to Izvestia, the FSO is looking to expand its use of typewriters in response to Edward Snowden’s reported use of a flash drive to expose US government surveillance programs.

“After the scandal with the spread of classified documents, WikiLeaks, revelations of Edward Snowden, reports of tapping Dmitry Medvedev during his visit to the G20 summit in London, it has been decided to expand the practice of creating paper documents,” an FSO source told Izvestia.

The source said typewriters were already being used in the country’s defence and emergencies ministries for drafts and secret notes, according to the BBC.