One of Telegram’s most distinctive features has always been its privacy, something that caught the attention of the political class. It was precisely this that led to its closure in many countries due to suspicions of its use for criminal activities. And now it has taken action in this regard.
A few weeks ago, Pavel Durov, CEO of the app, was arrested in France on charges of allowing “criminal activity to continue undeterred on the messaging app.” This may have led some to believe that Maybe so much privacy wasn’t a good idea. and Telegram has removed from its FAQ page the text that said private chats were protected and that “we do not process any requests related to them.”
Telegram spokesperson Remi Vaughn said the app’s source code has not changed: “Private chats also remain private, although you can always report of a new incoming chat to moderators using Block > Report. Anyone can check Telegram’s open source code and see that there were no changes.”
At the same time Durov issued his first public statement since his arrest, via his Telegram channel, promising to further moderate content on the platforma notable change in tone after the company initially said it had “nothing to hide.”
I’m still trying to understand what happened in France. But we hear the concerns. I made it my personal goal to prevent abusers of Telegram’s platform from interfering with the future of our 950+ million users.
My full post below. https://t.co/cDvRSodjst
— Pavel Durov (@durov) September 5, 2024
“The abrupt increase in the number of Telegram users to 950 million caused growth problems that made it easier for criminals to abuse our platform – Durov said in the statement – That is why I have made it my personal goal to ensure that we significantly improve things in this regard. We have already started that process internally and I will share more details about our progress with you very soon.”
Some of those changes appear to be taking effect: The company’s FAQ page has changed in the last few hours. For example, a section titled “There is illegal content on Telegram. How do I remove it?”
Until September 5, the answer to this question was that “All individual chats and group chats on Telegram are private among its participants. We do not process any requests related to them.”
But now this paragraph has been deleted. Instead, they have been replaced by: “All Telegram apps have ‘Report’ buttons that allow you to flag illegal content to our moderators, with just a few taps,” followed by instructions on how to report messages.
Durov’s arrest came as French authorities issued preliminary charges saying that Messaging platform is being used to distribute child sexual abuse material and drug trafficking and that the company refused to cooperate with investigators, according to The Associated Press.