Telegram has long been accused of not cooperating sufficiently with authorities. Then the founder was arrested in Paris. Now there are changes.
The logo of the Telegram app can be seen on a smartphone.
Dado Ruvic / Reuters
Now, however, there is general talk of the suspicion of “criminal acts.” At the same time, Telegram will carry out a legal assessment of the request before passing on the information. The IP address can, under certain circumstances, provide clues to a user’s whereabouts.
Durow wrote in a post on Telegram that the change was intended to prevent abuse of the online service’s search function, which some had used “to sell illegal items.” He was detained in France for several days, is free on bail and is not allowed to leave France.
Investigators in Paris accuse Durov of inadequate cooperation with authorities. There is suspicion that this has made him complicit in drug trafficking, money laundering, fraud and several crimes related to child abuse. Telegram has also often been accused of not taking consistent enough action against criminal activities. The service has always denied this.
