Pavel Durov has spoken out for the first time following his arrest last week, defending the platformâs moderation efforts and criticizing authorities for targeting him personally over usersâ illegal activities.
Today, nearly a week after the CEO of Telegram, Durov, was indicted in France, he released a statement addressing his recent legal troubles in the country.Â
In a post on his official Telegram channel, Durov expressed surprise at his charges, emphasizing that the messaging app has an official EU representative handling law enforcement requests. He criticized the authorities for bypassing established communication channels and questioning him personally.
He argued that pre-smartphone laws to charge a CEO with crimes committed by others on the platform he manages is âa misguided approach.â
Durov defended Telegramâs moderation practices, pointing out the platformâs daily efforts to remove harmful content and maintain hotlines with NGOs for urgent requests.
âWe take down millions of harmful posts and channels every day. We publish daily transparency reportsâĤ we have direct hotlines with NGOs to process urgent moderation requests fasterâ. Said Durov.
Durov emphasized the challenges of balancing privacy and security while maintaining global consistency, particularly in countries with weaker rules of law. He highlighted Telegramâs willingness to leave markets where its principles are compromised, citing bans in Russia and Iran for refusing government demands. He added:
“We are prepared to leave markets that arenât compatible with our principles, because we are not doing this for money. We are driven by the intention to bring good and defend the basic rights of people, particularly in places where these rights are violated”.
Durovâs arrest on Aug. 24 sparked a sharp decline in Toncoin TON-1.19% Toncoin, the cryptocurrency linked to Telegram, which plunged 20% around the time of his arrest.
[Source: Crypto.news]
