Author: Bitrace
On September 23, Telegram founder Pavel Durov posted on his personal channel that the IP addresses and phone numbers of users who violated the terms of service and abused public channels for illegal activities may be disclosed to relevant agencies upon legal request. Previously, Pavel Durov was arrested by French police on suspicion of allowing criminal activities to occur on Telegram and was released after paying bail, but he is still under judicial supervision and is required to report to the police every two weeks.
It is worth noting that Telegram has always been known for its strong privacy protection and security, but in the face of growing compliance requirements from global regulators, it has also had to make corresponding adjustments. After Pavel Durov was embroiled in legal problems, he made concessions to compliance by "providing user IP."
Telegram and Web3
Telegram has become the best place for Web3 applications with its huge user base and open API interface. Telegram not only officially supports the token $TON for all channel transactions to help Telegram become an interface for the flow of funds between Web2 and Web3, but also integrates The Open Network (TON) into the user interface of the application. The application ecosystem covers decentralized finance, domain names, games and other fields.
The combination of the two not only brings unprecedented convenience and innovative experience to users, but also enables both parties to gain huge user growth. Take Telegram’s popular click game Notcoin as an example. It has attracted 35 million users to the crypto market by rewarding users for clicking on the screen and giving them token airdrops.
At the same time, most blockchain project owners will choose to maintain their communities on Telegram, a communication tool. Telegram's convenient group and channel functions allow cryptocurrency project owners and users to easily interact and share the latest information and project updates. A large number of bots on Telegram provide crypto users with convenient functions such as arbitrage transaction reminders, data monitoring, and market inquiries. Therefore, TG accounts have become a standard feature for many industry insiders.
However, just like the two sides of a coin, the harm caused by the combination of the two should not be underestimated. Criminals use Telegram chat rooms and cryptocurrencies to conduct illegal transactions, launder money, and even plan terrorist activities, making Telegram a communication tool for "black and gray industries" in some cases.
Telegram and Black and Gray Industries
Telegram supports functions such as secret chat, custom privacy settings, and self-destructing messages to protect user privacy. The end-to-end encrypted secret chat function ensures that only the two parties in the communication can see the content of the conversation, making it difficult for regulators to track or monitor illegal activities; the custom privacy settings function allows users to hide their mobile phone numbers and last online time, enhancing user anonymity; the message deletion and self-destruction functions make it difficult for criminal evidence to be permanently preserved.
The platform was originally intended to protect users from unauthorized surveillance and data leakage, but in practice it has been exploited by some criminals. The chat screenshots show a victim who went to the police station to file a case under the guidance of Bitrace, but the case failed due to the lack of Telegram chat evidence.
In addition, Telegram's powerful search function allows users to obtain public channels and robots through search. However, this function has been abused by criminals to promote or sell illegal goods. For example, a Drainer organization reported by Bitrace sold its services through Telegram groups and collected a 30% share of the stolen money. Since its establishment in April, the Drainer organization has accumulated 596 subscribers and advertised in mid-May that it had made more than $200,000 in profits in the TON ecosystem (Drainer is a malware designed to illegally empty or "drain" cryptocurrency wallets. This software is rented out by its developers, meaning that anyone can pay to use the malicious tool).
Under pressure from many events, such as the ISIS terrorist organization using Telegram as a communication and propaganda tool to plan terrorist attacks, and the operators of the South Korean "Nth Room" incident opening live broadcast rooms and chat rooms on Telegram and making profits from cryptocurrency transactions, Pavel Durov still said, "We should not feel guilty about this. I still think that what we are doing is right, which is to protect user privacy." His tough attitude has, to a certain extent, made illegal activities based on Telegram more rampant.
"Is the risk of terrorist acts more important than 100% privacy? This is a big debate about social values." And now, Pavel Durov, who has compromised to provide more user data to the government, seems to have found the answer.
Balancing privacy and compliance
Pavel Durov recently announced an update to the platform's privacy policy - for those who break the rules, their IP addresses and phone numbers will be disclosed to the relevant authorities upon receipt of a valid legal request. This marks an important step for Telegram in terms of compliance.
In the past few weeks, Telegram has set up a dedicated team to use AI technology to make illegal content that may be covered in Telegram's search function inaccessible. By further updating the terms of service and privacy policy to ensure that they are consistent around the world, this shows Telegram's determination to combat illegal content and protect the platform's nearly one billion users.
As a global communication platform, Telegram must find a balance between protecting user privacy and complying with regulatory requirements. This balance should be adjusted dynamically based on local laws, specific events, application scenarios and other factors. For example, when receiving a valid legal request from law enforcement, Telegram will disclose the personal information of the relevant criminals, and such criminal users will no longer be protected by the platform. By appropriately sacrificing the "privacy" of a small number of criminals, Telegram can be prevented from being further abused without compromising the privacy of the public.
Compliance is critical
By strengthening compliance supervision, Telegram provides users with a more secure and reliable platform, laying the foundation for its long-term development in the global market. However, the "Nth Room Incident" shows that it is not easy for criminals to profit from simple social software. The payment and circulation of cryptocurrencies are the key, which is why anonymous cryptocurrencies are widely used in the black industry.
With the widespread use of cryptocurrencies, especially stablecoins like USDT, in the cryptocurrency field, many companies involved in cryptocurrencies should implement a detailed KYT mechanism to comply with regulations and manage risks.
