Extremely concerning!
The CEO of the popular messaging app Telegram was arrested at Le Bourget airport on Saturday evening for refusing to comply with censorship laws.
Pavel Durov, 39, was arrested on the tarmac as he got off his private jet from Azerbaijan.
BREAKING: #Telegram CEO Pavel Durov arrested by French authorities.
— John Scott-Railton (@jsrailton) August 24, 2024
Early official comments to French media suggest this follows from France's displeasure with Telegram's moderation & compliance with official requests(?).
If so, I'm pretty sure this is an unprecedented action… pic.twitter.com/hKa1Ip0buD
According to a machine translation of a report on TF1, “The Justice considers that the lack of moderation, cooperation with the police and the tools offered by Telegram (disposable number, cryptocurrencies, etc.) makes it complicit in drug trafficking, paedophile offences and fraud.”
“Investigators from the ONAF (National Anti-Fraud Office attached to the Customs Directorate) notified him and placed him in police custody. He is expected to be presented to an investigating judge this Saturday evening before a possible indictment on Sunday for a multitude of offences: terrorism, drugs, complicity, fraud, money laundering, concealment, paedophile content…” the report continued.
In an interview with Tucker Carlson in April, Durov said that the FBI expressed interest in creating a ‘backdoor’ into the Telegram app, ostensibly to spy on users.
This revelation highlights the U.S. government’s purported efforts to undermine Telegram’s promises of privacy and security.
Telegram founder @durov explains to @TuckerCarlson how the US government tried to secretly hire his engineer to create “back doors” for officials to spy on users. “For us running a privacy focused social media platform that probably wasn’t the best environment to be in.”
WATCH:
Telegram founder @durov explains to @TuckerCarlson how the US government tried to secretly hire his engineer to create “back doors” for officials to spy on users.
— Tucker Carlson Network (@TCNetwork) April 16, 2024
“For us running a privacy focused social media platform that probably wasn’t the best environment to be in.” pic.twitter.com/d8sFvmDuk4
Pavel Durov left Russia when the government tried to control his social media company, Telegram. But in the end, it wasn’t Putin who arrested him for allowing the public to exercise free speech. It was a western country, a Biden administration ally and enthusiastic NATO member, that locked him away. Pavel Durov sits in a French jail tonight, a living warning to any platform owner who refuses to censor the truth at the behest of governments and intel agencies. Darkness is descending fast on the formerly free world. Here’s our interview with Durov from several months ago:
