Telegram CEO Under Criminal Investigation In France

Uploaded on 2024-09-02 in TECHNOLOGY-Key Areas-Social Media, NEWS-Cybersecurity News, GOVERNMENT-Law Enforcement, FREE TO VIEW

Russian born Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of messaging app Telegram, is under formal judicial  investigation in France as part of a probe into organised crime on the firms messaging app.  He will not be allowed to leave France while he is in custody unless he pays a large security deposit.

Prosecutors in Paris said the 39-year-old billionaire has not been remanded in custody, but placed under judicial supervision, and has to pay €5m in bail.

The billionaire is being investigated for several suspected offences related to criminal activity on the platform, including complicity in illegal gang transactions, “laundering of crimes in an organised gang,” and refusal to communicate information to authorities, according to the French prosecutor’s statement. 

Interestingly, the investigation includes providing encryption services. While Telegram is sometimes described as an encrypted messaging tool, it is not end-to-end encrypted unless users actively choose to activate that feature. 

Durov's  french lawyer, David-Olivier Kaminski, who is expert in financial crime, said Telegram complied in every respect with European digital regulations and was moderated to the same standards as other social networks. He is quoted as calling it "absurd" to suggest his client could be involved "in criminal acts that don't concern him either directly or indirectly".

It is unprecedented for the owner of a social media or messaging platform to be arrested because of the way in which that platform is being used, and it has fuelled a debate about freedom of speech, accountability and the role of social media and messaging company bosses within all of that. 

Durov, who holds dual French citizenship, must present himself at a French police station twice a week and is not allowed to leave French territory.

Following threats to prosecute Elon Musk by the EU Commission for his activities on X / Twitter and repeated regulatory failures by Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook,  it is conceivable that other wealthy and powerful business owners might, at some point, also face criminal charges for what appears on ther social media platforms.

Paris Judicial Tribumal   |   Reuters   |   Politico   |    AlJazeera   |   Sky   |     France24   |   BBC   |    CNN   |   

Image: Vika_Glitter

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