Profile associations of the IT market, including the Internet Association of Ukraine and the IT Ukraine association, demand the introduction of a moratorium on the seizure of electronic information systems or their parts from IT companies, market players said in an open letter on Tuesday.

According to the letter, the practice of seizing severs by law-enforcement agencies has become a threat to Ukrainian civil society and the economy.

The association proposes that the seizure procedure is replaced with temporary access by copying information placed in these systems without their seizure. IT market players demand that temporary access should only be given only to officers of divisions tasked with fighting cyber crimes of the relevant law-enforcement agencies. The associations also demand the urgent return of equipment to Divan TV LLC, Service Online LLC, Steep Host LLC and other companies, which was seized illegally, and that officers involved in illegal seizures should be punished. Also, the associations expect that officers working in divisions tasked with fighting cyber crimes must pass tests to become certified.

"If the measures are not taken, we would have to appeal to international society, submit claims against the state of Ukraine to international courts and apply force majeure mechanisms to service Ukrainian public agencies," reads the letter.

The statement has been signed by seven associations and NGOs representing the interest of the sector. The statement is open for signing by other interested parties.