The Telegram CEO’s arrest has been a major topic globally over the past month as observers eagerly wait to see the outcome. Pavel Durov finally broke his silence, commenting about the absurdity of his arrest in a lengthy post on his Telegram channel which has since gathered attention across the internet.
Durov was arrested by the French Authorities on August 24 on the grounds of a lack of content moderation on the Telegram platform. The accusations include the facilitation of illegal activities such as drug trafficking and the distribution of child sexual abuse material on the platform. However, Durov called the actions of the French authorities a “misguided approach” after being told he might be responsible for other people’s illegal use of Telegram.
Durov Comments on His Arrest
Durove took to his private channel on the Telegram platform to address the situations surrounding his detention and expressed surprise at his arrest. On the post, he noted that Telegram has an official representative in the European Union who can be reached to handle legal requests and concerns instead of going directly to him.
Moreover, the Telegram founder stressed his previous cooperation with the French authorities, adding a further layer of confusion about the sudden turnaround and detention.“A while ago when asked, I personally helped them establish a hotline with Telegram to deal with the threat of terrorism in France,” he said on the Telegram post.
Additionally, Durov cited the inconsistency of charging the CEO of a tech company over platform abuse instead of the established practice of initiating legal actions against the service itself. He noted that using laws from the pre-smartphone era to charge a CEO with the crimes committed on his platform by third-party users is a “misguided approach.”
Durov said that this might deter the minds of innovators from building new tools and services if they know that they can be held responsible for the potential illegalities carried out by users of the platform.
Difficulties in Establishing Balance Between Privacy and Security
Additionally, Durov pointed to the difficulty in establishing the right balance between privacy and security. He noted that platforms have to accommodate privacy laws with law enforcement requirements, including local laws with EU laws while considering technological limitations.
“We’ve been committed to engaging with regulators to find the right balance”…”our experience is shaped by our mission to protect our users in authoritarian regimes. But we’ve always been open to dialogue,” he said.
Moreover, he referred to countries where the platform had exited because of the difficulty in finding the right balance. He cited the Telegram ban in Russia as a result of a refusal to hand over “encryption keys,” and the ban in Iran because of a refusal to block peaceful protesters’ channels. Durov said that his company is prepared to leave any country that does not align with its principles.
Durove Admits Telegram’s Imperfections
Meanwhile, the billionaire did not fail to admit that Telegram is not a perfect platform. He pointed out some things that need to be improved including establishing the right channels for authorities to send requests. However, he refuted the claims made by people that Telegram is an “anarchic paradise” where lawlessness thrives.
He stressed that Telegram takes down millions of harmful content daily to make the platform safe to use, adding that the staggering growth of its user base to 950 million users catalyzed an increase in criminal activities on the platform. Ultimately, Durov noted that he has taken it upon himself to ensure that things are improved on the platform.
Pavel Durov’s response to his arrest highlights the challenges of balancing privacy with security on tech platforms while criticizing the French authorities for holding him personally responsible for illegal activities conducted by users of Telegram.
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