Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of the Telegram instant messaging platform, has been charged by the Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office with a long list of serious offenses.
The man was arrested on Saturday upon his arrival at the Le Bourget airport and taken into custody, but the exact reasons for this action remained unclear until earlier today when the law authorities in France made their case.
According to the press release, Durov is implicated in various forms of complicity related to illegal activities facilitated through the Telegram platform and will be thoroughly investigated with the involvement of France’s Centre for the Fight against Cybercrime and the Anti-Fraud National Office.
The 12 charges against Durov are summarized as follows:
- Complicity – web-mastering an online platform for enabling illegal transactions in an organized group.
- Refusal to communicate information or documents necessary for lawful interceptions.
- Complicity – possessing pornographic images of minors.
- Complicity – distributing, offering, or making available pornographic images of minors in an organized group.
- Complicity – acquiring, transporting, possessing, offering, or selling narcotic substances.
- Complicity – offering, selling, or making available tools or programs for illegal access to data systems.
- Complicity – organized fraud.
- Criminal association with a view to committing a crime or offense punishable by 5 or more years of imprisonment.
- Laundering of proceeds derived from organized crime or offenses.
- Providing cryptology services without certified declaration.
- Providing a cryptology tool without prior declaration.
- Importing a cryptology tool without prior declaration.
Durov’s custody is extended by another 96 hours, until August 28, to allow the authorities to perform a comprehensive investigation on the above.
Telegram’s “grey” status
Telegram has gained massive popularity among cybercriminals in the past couple of years, especially after several law enforcement operations that have resulted in the dismantling of large dark web platforms.
The communications platform currently serves as a hub for the distribution of various illegal materials, and its API is being abused extensively to set up command and control servers on the platform that facilitate data exfiltration for info-stealer malware, etc. There are even malware-as-a-service operations that set up bots to build custom malware payloads for paying cybercriminals.
Despite multiple calls for better moderation on the platform, Telegram has shown no signs it’s willing to put in the effort to curb illegal activity and take decisive action against it. It is characteristic of the mentality of the people behind Telegram, that in its statement about Durov’s arrest, it is mentioned that holding the owner accountable for abuse on the platform is “absurd.”
RestorePrivacy has previously warned about Telegram’s lack of end-to-end encryption in anything but ‘Secret Chats,’ and even there, its code and mechanisms aren’t verifiable. Also, we have noted that the platform logs sensitive user data, including IP addresses, and may share data with government agencies.
On that front, the French accused Telegram of not collaborating with Western authorities when interceptions to perform investigations were required, but there have been previous, unconfirmed reports about Telegram sharing data with the Germans and Russians.
There have been multiple cases of security experts pointing the finger at Telegram for planting backdoors on its app or allowing stealthy exfiltration of group chats that even include messages deleted years ago.
If you’re troubled by these developments and looking to jump ship, check out our list of the best secure messaging apps here.
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I couldn’t hang with the out of context (in regard to the article) discussion of “the white west.”
It sounds like racist nonsense promulgated in part by insane, marxist academia, world economic forum, blackrock, neo trotskyists, modern devotees of gramsci, neo maoists, and various and sundry nutballs regurgitating vile stereotypes in order to inflame and divide and cause regular people to hate one another – in order to force a bankrupt ideology that can’t achieve power in any other way.
Compare the “christian nationalism” gaslighting by the far left in the US.
The man is finished. That’s a long list.
France remains a member of the EU, while the UK is no longer a member after Brexit. Both countries are members of NATO and the Council of Europe.
https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/inl/rls/nrcrpt/2014/vol2/222469.htm
Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLATs) allow generally for the exchange of evidence and information in criminal and related matters. On February 1, 2010, 27 U.S.-EU Instruments/Agreements/Protocols entered into force that either supplemented existing MLATs or created new mutual legal assistance relationships between the United States and every member of the EU.
The United States also has signed and ratified the Inter-American Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance of the Organization of American States, the United Nations Convention against Corruption, the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, and the 1988 UN Drug Convention.
The US Departments of Justice, State, and Treasury have aggressively sought to encourage foreign governments to cooperate in joint investigations of narcotics trafficking and money laundering, offering the possibility of sharing in forfeited assets. A parallel goal has been to encourage spending of these assets to improve narcotics-related law enforcement. The long term goal has been to encourage governments to improve asset forfeiture laws and procedures so they will be able to conduct investigations and prosecutions of narcotics trafficking and money laundering that includes asset forfeiture.
This could explain a lot, as Telegram has shown no signs it’s willing to put in the effort to curb illegal activity and take decisive action against it. So the French accused Telegram of not collaborating with Western authorities when interceptions to perform investigations were required.
Telegram the communications platform currently serves as a hub for the distribution of various illegal materials, and its API is being abused extensively to set up command and control servers on the platform that facilitate data exfiltration for info-stealer malware, etc. There are even malware-as-a-service operations that set up bots to build custom malware payloads for paying cybercriminals.
Falling into play, the US Department of State in cooperation with the Department of Justice to facilitate cooperation in criminal matters have encouraged governments to improve asset forfeiture laws and procedures so they will be able to conduct investigations and prosecutions of narcotics trafficking and money laundering that includes asset forfeiture. Will this be the outcome – Telegram’s asset forfeiture?
I completely agree with the last paragraph of RP’s previous stance. I remember reading that article. I like Telegram. It is arguably the best designed messaging app, aesthetically pleasing and super comfortable to use with few or many contacts and gives you the opportunity to achieve a lot with few movement. No other app feels that way. BUT the very likely of backdoor thing and closed mechanism of the source and some shady statements and conduct in the past from Telegram founders are concerning and makes it a solid reason to ditch the app in favor of more private and secure app. (my vote is absolutely not for Signal – no not at all never, but my vote goes to Threema)
However in the light of the facts it is impossible not to see the French political arrogance and hypocrisy of the European white west. Telegram is bad and facilitates comiting crimes and should be banned or whatever… All right. No objection here. But when white west europe acts as if they are holier than…. That’s just BS. and that’s a fact.
Christopher, as an aid for readers (like me), the term – White west europe was unknown.
Key Characteristics to the term:
AI answer,
-Christianity: Christianity is the dominant religion in White West Europe.
-Language: The primary languages spoken in this region are Romance languages (French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese) and Germanic languages (English, German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian).
-Cultural Heritage: The region is characterized by a rich cultural heritage, including art, literature, music, and architecture, shaped by centuries of European history and traditions.
-Economy: White West Europe is home to some of the world’s most developed economies, with a strong focus on services, technology, and manufacturing.
“But when white west europe acts as if they are holier than….” I think I see your point – basically, Who governs the officials governing?
Where are factual empirical evidence and data in applicability to real-world problems and its ability to engage?
Where are our rights as all nations in that prioritizes an individuals freedom and autonomy over the collective as any systemic transformation in structural change?
As highlighting the need for a more global and inclusive understanding of critique and social change that include conclusions as grounded in observable and measurable facts.
A group of philosophers and social theorists who have critiques of Western dominance and imperialism, emphasizing the need for alternative epistemologies and methodologies that prioritize non-Western perspectives and experiences.
As this importance of electronic commerce for all nations has lead decolonial and postcolonial theories, highlighting the need for a more global and inclusive understanding of critique and social change.
Is it time for the framework of a Global Ethics and Governance plan, providing a global resource for policymakers, regulators, academics, the private sector and civil society to find solutions to the most pressing challenges posed by ecommerce and the fact of Artificial Intelligence is here…with an ever-rising digital flux to technology.
thanks
I’m willing to bet, despite all the conspiracy theories, there is some truth to the allegations. However, as we all [should] know, it’s not what you know, iot’s what you can prove.