Russian software firm denies spying link

A Russian IT company has denied reports it was involved in developing software to monitor social networks for the country's intelligence services. The daily newspaper Kommersant reported Monday the company Iteranet had a contract with the Foreign Intelligence Service of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces. Iteranet issued a denial later Monday. "We are not in the business of developing systems to monitor blogs and plant information in the blogosphere," Iteranet CEO Igor Matskevich told RIA Novosti. "There have been no contracts of the type Kommersant claims. We do not engage in such activity." Kommersant had said Iteranet's contract included systems to monitor and control the blogs and shape public opinion by spreading "special information" in social networks.