The founder of Telegram is Pavlo Durov stated about the intention to strengthen content moderation on the platform, stressing that the messenger was never created to support criminal activities. He made these statements during a court hearing in France following his arrest in August 2024. Durov is currently under house arrest and actively denies accusations of facilitating illegal activities on the platform. Telegram is known to exist in a gray area between the public and private Internet: its content is not indexed by Google and remains relatively opaque to users who are not part of the communities that use it. At the same time, messages can spread much faster than in high-speed chat applications such as WhatsApp. The application declares privacy, which attracts individuals with criminal intentions.
Telegram is not a platform for criminals
It became known that on December 6, Pavlo Durov, the founder and CEO of Telegram, stated before two investigative judges: «Telegram was not created as a platform for criminals«. His speech lasted almost ten hours, during which the French justice system listened to the position of the head of the messenger. Durov denied the accusation that his platform was allegedly used to facilitate the commission of a number of crimes and offenses.
On Friday, January 17, a French news resource Franceinfo exclusively revealed the details of this lengthy conversation for the first time. In his statements, Durov emphasized that Telegram was always intended to be a platform for free communication, not a tool for spreading illegal content. He also emphasized his willingness to cooperate with law enforcement agencies to improve moderation mechanisms and prevent abuse of the platform.
Journalists they tell, that at the court hearings, Pavlo Durov answered the judges’ sharp questions about the massive distribution of illegal content on the platform. Among these problems were named channels through which it is possible to buy drugs, access stolen bank data, order the services of hired killers, as well as groups distributing children’s criminal content. Accompanied by three lawyers, Durov gave detailed answers and declared his readiness to improve the moderation procedures in Telegram.
He noted that the platform is already taking large-scale measures to combat violations. Between 15 and 20 million accounts of illegal users are deleted worldwide every month. Durov stressed that Telegram does not avoid responsibility for content security, but emphasized that this problem is not unique to its platform. According to him, Telegram’s competitors, in particular other popular social networks, face the same challenges and must also find ways to solve them.
Durov also explained that the privacy at the heart of Telegram often raises the ire of governments and organizations, but it was created to protect the rights of millions of ordinary users, not to support criminals. He admitted that the platform needs to further improve its moderation mechanisms to respond more quickly to abuse. At the same time, Durov assured that Telegram is ready to cooperate with law enforcement agencies within the limits of the law to solve problems with illegal content.
Durov’s statements became part of his defense strategy, aimed not only at justifying the company’s policies, but also at demonstrating readiness for change. We would like to believe that Telegram is indeed trying to strike a balance between protecting user privacy and fighting abuse, which is a challenge not only for the messenger, but for the entire social networking industry.
The rules change
As you know, Telegram has announced a change in the rules, which now allow content moderation in private chats. The move came in response to criticism of the messenger for insufficient measures to combat illegal content, as well as Durov’s arrest in France on charges of failing to enforce the law.
From now on, messenger users will be able to flag illegal content in private chats for review by moderators. This is the first time that Telegram has extended the scope of its moderators to private chats. Previously, the company followed a policy that all chats and groups were considered completely private to their members, and Telegram did not interfere with their content, rejecting requests for moderation.
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In addition, the platform introduced a new tool to combat illegal content, an email address where users can send automatic requests to remove content that violates the rules. In the request, it is necessary to indicate a link to the relevant material, which will allow the moderators to respond quickly.
Despite these changes, it remains unclear how they will affect Telegram’s ability to respond to law enforcement requests. Previously, the company only provided limited information about its users with a court order, but the new policy may expand opportunities for cooperation with government agencies.
Some experts see this step as an important signal about changes in Telegram’s privacy policy. At the same time, there are questions about maintaining a balance between the right to privacy of users and the need to counter illegal content. Pavel Durov’s decision to change course is likely a response to growing pressure from governments and the public, who are calling on tech companies to take more responsibility for the content shared on their platforms.
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Privacy Above All?
«Although 99.999% of Telegram users have nothing to do with crime, the 0.001% involved in illegal activities create a bad image for the entire platform, endangering the interests of nearly a billion of our users. That’s why we’re committed to changing Telegram moderation from a realm of criticism to a realm of praise.», – wrote Telegram boss Pavlo Durov in his account. The naivety of the founder of the «underground application» is obvious, because the desire to change the image of Telegram, which has become a haven for criminals, looks more like a desire to mask reality. Durov, trying to present the platform in a better light, does not notice that his words about improving moderation sound more like an attempt to avoid responsibility for the impunity prevailing on the platform.
In 2015, following allegations that Telegram was being used by the Islamic State, Durov said: «Our right to privacy is more important than our fear of bad things like terrorism». These words only reinforce the founder’s delusional approach to the serious problems of the platform, where free speech and privacy become a cover for the inability to control content. Such a position, which prioritizes abstract principles over user safety, looks like an undisguised attempt to abdicate responsibility for serious consequences.
Telegram has often come under heavy criticism for its moderation policy, especially when it comes to user complaints about rule violations. As you know, privacy is not just a rule of Telegram, it is its essential feature, the most important feature as a brand. It is clear that privacy has always attracted users, but among them there were not only connoisseurs of their own communication integrity, but also criminals who used the policy of the channel for their destructive purposes.
Privacy First — This approach has resulted in limited intervention by the platform, even in cases where users have reported breaches. In particular, many users complained that the platform does not always respond promptly to reports of illegal content. It is quite obvious that large-scale public channels or groups could contain questionable content, but they were not closed. Everyone has probably been met with complete disregard by Telegram when sending complaints about spam, propaganda narratives, hate speech, misinformation, and even outright militaristic content.
Telegram has consistently received accusations that complaints about violations such as illegal trading, extremist content or fraud are not handled properly. Many users felt that there is no proper communication mechanism between users and the platform.
In some countries, notably Germany and France, Telegram has even been accused of ignoring requests from law enforcement agencies for content that violates local laws. Users noted that public channels that violated the rules continued to function after complaints.
British edition The Guardian called Telegram the largest underground application in the world, which has a very dubious reputation. From an instant messenger created in response to censorship in Russia to today’s minimally moderated platform, the app has been a constant source of controversy, including for organizing riots in the UK. Its development is based on the idea of freedom of speech, often bordering on recklessness.
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Why does Telegram have a reputation as a low-moderation platform?
Everything can be explained, but understanding the problems does not mean that the management of the messenger should rest on that. The reason for weak moderation is, in particular, the decentralized structure. Telegram does not centralize content management, leaving a lot of responsibility to group and channel administrators.
The company has historically refused to inspect private chats to avoid violating users’ rights. This is the privacy policy declared by her. Moderation in Telegram relies heavily on automatic algorithms, which do not always work effectively in difficult situations.
Some countries have repeatedly called on Telegram to increase moderation. For example, France and Germany have drawn attention to the fact that Telegram is becoming a haven for extremists, drug dealers and other illegal content. In India, Telegram has been accused of distributing illegal files, including copyright-infringing movies and educational materials.
