French authorities reportedly arrest Telegram CEO Pavel Durov

By Barbara Surk

Aug. 25, 2024 8:50 AM PT

NICE, France — The founder and chief executive of the messaging service Telegram was detained at a Paris airport on an arrest warrant alleging his platform has been used for money laundering, drug trafficking and other offenses, French media reported Sunday.

Pavel Durov, a dual citizen of France and Russia, was taken into custody at Paris-Le Bourget Airport on Saturday evening after landing in France from Azerbaijan, according to broadcasters LCI and TF1.

Investigators from the National Anti-Fraud Office, attached to the French customs department, notified Durov, 39, that he was being placed in police custody, the broadcasters said.

Durov’s representatives couldn’t be immediately reached for comment.

French prosecutors declined to comment on Durov’s arrest when contacted by the Associated Press on Sunday, in line with regulations during an investigation.

French media reported that the warrant for Durov was issued by France at the request of the special unit at the country’s interior ministry in charge of investigating crimes against minors. Those include online sexual exploitation, such as possession and distribution of child sexual abuse content and grooming for sexual purposes.

Telegram was founded by Durov and his brother in the wake of the Russian government’s crackdown after mass pro-democracy protests that rocked Moscow at the end of 2011 and 2012.

The demonstrations prompted Russian authorities to clamp down on the digital space, adopting regulations that forced internet providers to block websites and cellphone operators to store call records and messages that could be shared with security services.

In the increasingly oppressive environment, Telegram and its pro-privacy rhetoric offered a convenient way for Russians to communicate and share news. In 2018, Russian media watchdog Roskomnadzor moved to block Telegram over its refusal to hand over encryption keys, but ultimately failed to fully restrict access to the app.

Telegram continued to be widely used — including by government institutions — and the ban was dropped two years later. In March 2024, Roskomnadzor said that Telegram was working with the Russian government to a certain extent and had removed more than 256,000 posts with prohibited content at Roskomnadzor’s request.

Telegram also continues to be a popular source of news in Ukraine, where media outlets and officials use it to share information on the war, and deliver missile and air raid alerts.

In a statement posted on its platform, Telegram said it abides by European Union laws including the digital services act, and its moderation is “within industry standards and constantly improving.”

Durov, the company added, “has nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe.”

“It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform,” Telegram’s post said. “Almost a billion users globally use Telegram as means of communication and as a source of vital information. We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all.”

A French judicial official suggested that Durov could appear before a judge Sunday to determine whether he will remain in custody. The official wasn’t authorized to be named publicly during an investigation.

“If the person concerned is to be brought before a judge today, it is only in the context of the possible extension of his police custody measure — a decision that must be taken and notified by an investigating judge,” the official said.

Western governments have often criticized Telegram for lack of content moderating on the messaging service, which experts say opens up the messaging platform for potential use in money laundering, drug trafficking and allowing the sharing of content linked to sexual exploitation of minors.

Compared with other messaging platforms, Telegram is “less secure [and] more lax in terms of policy and detection of illegal content,” said David Thiel, a Stanford University researcher, who has investigated the use of online platforms for child exploitation.

In addition, Telegram “appears basically unresponsive to law enforcement,” Thiel said, adding that messaging service WhatsApp “submitted over 1.3 million CyberTipline reports in 2023 [and] Telegram submits none.”

In 2022, Germany issued fines of 5.125 million euros, or about $5 million, against the operators of Telegram for failing to comply with German law. The Federal Office of Justice said that Telegram hasn’t established a lawful way for reporting illegal content or named an entity in Germany to receive official communication.

Both are required under German laws that regulate large online platforms.

Last year, Brazil temporarily suspended Telegram over its failure to surrender data on neo-Nazi activity related to a police inquiry into school shootings in November.

Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of social media site X who’s called himself a “free speech absolutist” in the past, posted ”#freePavel” in support of Durov following the arrest.

Russian government officials expressed outrage at Durov’s arrest, with some highlighting what they said was the West’s double standard on freedom of speech.

“In 2018, a group of 26 NGOs [nongovernmental organizations], including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Freedom House, Reporters Without Borders, the Committee to Protect Journalists, and others, condemned the Russian court’s decision to block Telegram,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

“Do you think this time they’ll appeal to Paris and demand Durov’s release?” Zakharova said in a post on her personal Telegram account.

Officials at the Russian Embassy in Paris had requested access to Durov, Zakharova told Russian state news outlet RIA Novosti, but she added that French authorities view Durov’s French citizenship as his primary one.

In a statement to the AP earlier this month, Telegram said that it actively combats misuse of its platform.

“Moderators use a combination of proactive monitoring and user reports in order to remove content that breaches Telegram’s terms of service. Each day, millions of pieces of harmful content are removed,” the company said.

Surk writes for the Associated Press. The AP’s Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England, contributed to this report.