Telegram's founder and CEO, Pavel Durov, announced on Monday that the messaging platform had removed additional 'problematic content', just weeks after his arrest in France on charges related to failing to act against criminals using the app. Durov informed the 13 million subscribers of his personal messaging channel that Telegram's search feature had been misused by individuals who violated the platform's terms of service to sell illegal goods.
Durov stated that 'over the past few weeks', the Telegram team had utilized artificial intelligence to thoroughly review the platform, ensuring that 'all the problematic content we identified in Search is no longer accessible'. He also mentioned that the platform had updated its terms of service and privacy policy to explicitly state that it would share infringers' details with authorities, including internet IP addresses and phone numbers, in response to valid legal requests.
'We won't let bad actors jeopardise the integrity of our platform for almost a billion users,' Durov asserted. Durov was arrested on August 24 upon his arrival at Le Bourget airport outside Paris via a private jet. After several days of questioning, he was charged with multiple counts of failing to curb extremist and terrorist content and was released on a five-million-euro ($5.6 million) bail. During the investigation, he is required to remain in France and report to police twice a week.
Initially, Durov criticized his arrest, but he has since taken steps that seem to comply with Paris's demands. On September 6, he announced that Telegram would modify its 'people nearby' feature to present users with 'legitimate businesses' instead of 'bots and scammers'. 'This year we are committed to turn moderation on Telegram from an area of criticism into one of praise,' he stated at the time. Durov, an enigmatic figure who rarely speaks in public, has a fortune estimated at $15.5 billion by Forbes magazine, but he advocates for an ascetic lifestyle that includes ice baths and abstaining from alcohol and coffee.
