Pavel Durov: Telegram founder arrested over app’s alleged child protection failings

Telegram has said its chief executive has “nothing to hide” after his arrest in France over the platform’s alleged failings in moderating criminal activity, including the spread of child sexual abuse material.

The messaging app’s billionaire founder was arrested at Paris-Le Bourget airport on Saturday evening after arriving on his private jet from Azerbaijan.

Durov’s arrest was under a warrant issued by Ofmin, a French police agency formed last year to prevent violence against minors.

“At the heart of this issue is the lack of moderation and co-operation by the platform (which has nearly 1 billion users), particularly in the fight against child sex crimes,” Jean-Michel Bernigaud, Ofmin’s secretary general, posted on LinkedIn.

French news agency AFP claimed Durov may also face alleged offences of enabling drug trafficking and promoting terrorism. The Paris prosecutor’s office has previously declined to comment.

In a statement on Sunday, Dubai-based Telegram said: “Telegram abides by EU laws, including the Digital Services Act – its moderation is within industry standards and constantly improving.

“Telegram’s CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe. It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for abuse of that platform.”

“We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation,” the company added.

Durov’s detainment has been criticised by free speech proponents, with X owner Elon Musk posting the hashtag “#freepavel” on his platform.

In a separate post on X, Edward Snowden, the US surveillance whistleblower who now lives in Russia, called Durov’s arrest “an assault on the basic human rights of speech and association”.

Telegram was founded in 2013 and has surged in popularity in recent years to reach nearly 1bn users. The app has become particularly widely used in Russia, Ukraine and Israel.

However, its encrypted features have also raised concerns over extremism and criminal activity on the platform. Telegram was recently used by UK far-right activists to promote protests over the Southport stabbings that descended into rioting.

Durov fled his native Russia in 2014 after losing control of VKontakte, the popular social media platform he co-founded in 2007, and allegedly refusing to hand over data to Moscow of Ukrainian activists protesting a pro-Russia administration.

He moved to Dubai in 2017 and is reported to have United Arab Emirates citizenship. Durov became a French citizen in August 2021.