Telegram Agrees To Share User Data For Criminal Investigations

The messaging app Telegram has agreed to share data for criminal investigations, in what marks a significant policy reversal for CEO, Pavel Durov.

In a statement made on the Telegram app, Durov said that: “We’ve made it clear that the IP addresses and phone numbers of those who violate our rules can be disclosed to relevant authorities in response to valid legal requests.”

Durov, the Russian-born co-founder of Telegram, who was detained by French authorities in August, has been charged with enabling criminal activity on the platform.

The charges Durov faces stem from claims that Telegram has been used to distribute child abuse imagery, facilitate drug trafficking, commit fraud and aid organized crime. Durov was also charged with failing to comply with law enforcement by withholding information or documents.

Founded in 2013, Telegram says it has nearly 1 billion worldwide users. It gained popularity as a result of its strong stance on privacy and describes itself as: “Committed to protecting user privacy and human rights such as freedom of speech and assembly. It has played a prominent role in pro-democracy movements.”

Durov described Telegram’s search program as “more powerful,” than other messaging apps, but said this feature “has been abused by people who violated our Terms of Service to sell illegal goods,” in the statement made on his Telegram channel.

He then said that a “a dedicated team of moderators, leveraging AI, has made Telegram Search much safer.” He added that “all the problematic content we identified in Search is no longer accessible,” and said that anything unsafe or illegal found in Telegram Search can now be reported via @SearchReport on the app.

“These measures should discourage criminals,” he wrote. “Telegram Search is meant for finding friends and discovering news, not for promoting illegal goods. We won’t let bad actors jeopardize the integrity of our platform for almost a billion users.”

This marks a major shift in policy for Durov and the app. After his arrest in August, a statement shared on Telegram said that, “It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for the abuse of that platform,” and said that the app abides by European Union laws.

Telegram faces additional challenges in Ukraine.

According to the BBC, Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council (Rnbo) announced a ban on the use of Telegram on official devices issued to government and military personnel, as well as defense sector and critical infrastructure employees.

This ban comes in response to perceived security threats from Russia.

The Rnbo said that: “Telegram is actively used by the enemy for cyberattacks, the distribution of phishing and malicious software, user geolocation and missile strike correction.”

The Telegram app is popular in both Russia and Ukraine and has played a pivotal role in the Russia-Ukraine war.

Newsweek contacted Telegram for comment via the platform’s official press team channel.

Do you have a story Newsweek should be covering? Do you have any questions about this story? Contact LiveNews@newsweek.com.