Embattled Telegram CEO Pavel Durov reportedly agreed to hand over IP addresses and phone numbers of those who use his encrypted messaging app to government authorities that make valid legal requests.
Durov, the billionaire French-Russian national who was arrested in France last month and slapped with a slew of charges including facilitating the spread of child pornography through his popular messaging app, announced on Monday that Telegram changed its terms of service in order to deter criminals from using the service.
The move is a departure from Telegram’s previous policies, which often gave short shrift to government requests for user data.
Telegram amassed a user base of hundreds of millions of people worldwide on account of its reputation as an online messaging service that safeguards privacy, eschews data collection and rejects cooperation with government officials.
The app offers end-to-end encryption chats that ensure only the sender and recipient are able to read the messages that are exchanged.
But critics claim Telegram is the preferred method of communication for criminal organizations engaged in a range of illegal activity including money laundering, sex trafficking and distribution of child pornography.
Telegram collects very little data compared to other messaging platforms. In the past, the company has said it would only consider sharing data with governments if the request is backed up by a court order that is legally binding under the jurisdiction it operates.
The company is headquartered in the United Arab Emirates, where Durov also has citizenship.
The new updated terms of service appear to expand company policy by “ensuring they are consistent across the world,” Durov wrote in a post on his Telegram channel.
Earlier this month, Durov pledged to step up efforts to fight criminal activity on his messaging app after French authorities handed down preliminary charges accusing him of enabling illegal activities.
Telegram quietly removed language from its “frequently asked questions” page which said that “we do not process any requests related to them.”
In a Telegram post from Sept. 5, Durov defended himself against the French judicial investigation, suggesting that he shouldn’t have been targeted personally.
“Using laws from the pre-smartphone era to charge a CEO with crimes committed by third parties on the platform he manages is a misguided approach,” the post said.
“Building technology is hard enough as it is. No innovator will ever build new tools if they know they can be personally held responsible for potential abuse of those tools.”
While insisting that Telegram is not “some sort of anarchic paradise,” Durov said surging numbers of Telegram users “caused growing pains that made it easier for criminals to abuse our platform.”
“That’s why I made it my personal goal to ensure we significantly improve things in this regard. We’ve already started that process internally, and I will share more details on our progress with you very soon,” he said.
In late August, Durov was detained by French investigators at Le Bourget Airport outside of Paris.
French allegations against Durov include that Telegram is used for child sexual abuse material and drug trafficking, and that the platform refused to share information or documents with investigators when required by law.
Durov, who has long said he has “nothing to hide,” has been barred from leaving France while the investigation continues.
With Post Wires
