According to recent reports, Telegram CEO Pavel Durov has announced that the company will now provide user IP addresses and phone numbers to authorities in response to valid legal requests. This decision comes after Durov’s arrest in France due to allegations of failing to prevent illegal activities on the platform, such as hate speech, money laundering, drug trafficking, weapons, and illegal sexual content.
Previously, Durov strongly opposed holding the CEO personally responsible for user behavior, citing potential negative effects on technological innovation. However, following his arrest, he emphasized the importance of not allowing bad actors to undermine the platform, which boasts nearly 1 billion users. Telegram has also taken steps to remove problematic content from search results and has updated its terms of service and privacy policy to allow for the provision of user information to authorities when legally requested.
Despite these changes, Telegram maintains that private chats remain end-to-end encrypted and that the company cannot decrypt the content of these exchanges. However, it’s worth noting that group chats and discussion channels will not be encrypted.
This decision by Telegram is expected to ease some of the pressure from French authorities, but it also raises questions about the future of the platform, which has been known for its strong security and privacy features.