Telegram CEO's first statement after arrest: Authorities should target platforms for law enforcement and prepare to exit 'incompatible markets'

Pavel Durov, the CEO of instant messaging app Telegram, made his first statement after his arrest in France. He not only criticized the French authorities for the reasons for his arrest, but also stated that Telegram is preparing to withdraw from a market that cannot coexist harmoniously with platform principles.

Durov stated in a statement that the police have informed him that he may be personally responsible for the illegal use of Telegram by others, as the French authorities have not received a response from Telegram. Durov was surprised by this and claimed that Telegram has an official representative in the EU who can accept and respond to EU requirements, and French authorities have multiple ways to contact him for help.

Durov continued to criticize the government's legal actions against him:

If a country is dissatisfied with a certain online service, the established practice is to take legal action against the service itself. Using pre smartphone era laws to prosecute a third party for crimes committed on a platform managed by an executive is a misguided approach. Developing technology is already difficult enough, and if innovators know they may be personally responsible for the potential abuse of these tools, then no one will be willing to build new tools

Durov also cited the process of Telegram being banned in Russia and Iran as an example in his statement:

Sometimes we cannot reach an agreement with the regulatory authorities of a certain country on the appropriate balance between privacy and security. In such cases, we are prepared to leave that country, and we have done so many times. When Russia demanded that we hand over our 'encryption keys' for surveillance, we refused - so Telegram was banned in Russia; when Iran demanded that we block the channels of peaceful protesters, we refused - so Telegram was banned in Iran. We are prepared to leave markets that are incompatible with our principles because we are not doing this for money, and our motivation comes from our intention to bring benefits and defend people's basic rights, especially in places where these rights are violated

Durov finally admitted that there are still areas for improvement in Telegram, and the rapid increase in user numbers has brought about "growing pains", making it easier for criminals to abuse the platform. He stated that Telegram has already initiated an internal improvement process and will share more details in the future.

Durov was arrested when he arrived at a French airport last month and subsequently charged by the country's court on charges including conspiracy to spread child sex images, drug trafficking, and refusal to cooperate with law enforcement agencies. At present, the authorities have released Durov under "judicial supervision" and requested that the founder of Telegram stay in France.

Telegram updates FAQ page

According to information shared by DB News, Telegram has updated the description of private chat censorship on its Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page.

In the section on how to remove illegal content on Telegram, the answer removed the phrase 'All Telegram chats and group chats are private conversations between participants. We do not process any requests related to this' and added a method for reporting illegal content, as well as descriptions such as' Welcome users from the European Union to view the user guide of the EU Digital Services Act for relevant reporting options'.