Telegram’s CEO has shared his thoughts for the first time on his arrest in France, and has warned of a process of change within the app to more effectively detect illegal behaviour within it.
Days after the conditional release of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, and just after sharing his first statements after his arrest, Telegram has made a U-turn to begin moderating and monitoring more what its users do in private chat groups. Although, initially and with Durov detained in France, Telegram claimed to have “nothing to hide”, the public letter that the CEO has written shows a change in discourse.
Despite saying that the arrest was a “surprise” and sharing the reasons why he does not see the behavior of the French authorities as correct, he did admit to difficulties in controlling the growth of the messaging app, and said he had initiated internal changes to its operation.
«We publish daily transparency reports […] “We have hotlines with NGOs to process urgent moderation requests faster. However, we hear voices saying that it is not enough. 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. That is why I made it my personal goal to make sure 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,” Durov writes in the final paragraphs.
Stricter regulations
The beginning of this “process” has already been seen in a change to Telegram’s FAQ page. One such sample question reads: “There is illegal content on Telegram. How do I remove it?” Until September 5, Telegram’s answer to this question was: “All Telegram chats and group chats are private between their participants. We do not process any requests related to them.”
However, this has just changed. The new response states: “All Telegram apps have ‘Report’ buttons that allow you to flag illegal content to our moderators, in just a few taps,” preceding instructions on how to report content.
This change in the FAQ suggests that from now on, the Telegram moderation team will extend its activity and will monitor illegal or inappropriate content on the platform much more closely. (In the Spanish version from the FAQ, the previous answer still applies).
Telegram has been accused of serving as a channel for transmitting child abuse and drug trafficking content, although it is also known to serve hackers and cybercriminals, among others.
The CEO defends himself
Although his arrest seems to have prompted this change of direction for Telegram, Durov has defended himself strongly against the accusations of the French justice system in these latest statements.
“Using laws from the pre-smartphone era to accuse a CEO of crimes committed by third parties on the platform he runs is the wrong approach,” he said. He also criticised the French authorities for not first contacting Telegram’s official representative for the European Union, and noted that he has previously worked with France to improve communications between Telegram and its government.
“We are ready to abandon markets that are not compatible with our principles, because we are not in it for money. We are driven by the desire to do good and to defend the basic rights of people, particularly in places where these rights are violated,” Durov’s letter reads.
“No innovator will ever create new tools if he or she knows that he or she can be held personally liable for potential abuse of those tools. Striking the right balance between privacy and security is not easy,” laments the tech entrepreneur.
