Telegram CEO Pavel Durov clarified adjustments to the platform’s privateness coverage, emphasizing that the messaging software has shared criminals’ IP addresses with authorities since 2018.
In an Oct. 2 publish on his Telegram channel, Durov defined that final week’s coverage replace goals to streamline and unify Telegram’s privateness strategy throughout totally different areas.
In response to him, the brand new replace would enable the platform to share person IP addresses and cellphone numbers with authorities in response to authorized requests.
This coverage replace follows Durov’s current arrest in France, the place he confronted allegations associated to Telegram’s knowledge practices. French authorities detained him for failing to reasonable content material and share person knowledge, sparking widespread criticism of the grounds for his arrest.
IP tackle sharing
Durov famous that Telegram has constantly shared criminals’ IP addresses and cellphone numbers with authorities in international locations like Brazil, India, and, extra lately, numerous European nations.
He said:
“At any time when we obtained a correctly shaped authorized request by way of related communication traces, we might confirm it and disclose the IP addresses/cellphone numbers of harmful criminals. This course of had been in place lengthy earlier than final week.”
He said that these disclosures happen in response to formal authorized requests submitted by way of official communication channels. In 2024, Telegram complied with 203 requests in Brazil and 6,992 in India.
Durov additionally famous a rise in authorized requests throughout the third quarter of 2024. He attributed this rise to European authorities appropriately utilizing the suitable communication channels.
He furthered that Telegram’s Transparency Bot, which gives data on these requests, stays lively in delivering updates on processed knowledge disclosures.
Regardless of these updates, Durov emphasised that Telegram’s basic rules stay intact. He reiterated that the platform nonetheless champions freedom and privateness whereas complying with related native legal guidelines.
He concluded:
“Telegram was constructed to guard activists and extraordinary individuals from corrupt governments and firms — we don’t enable criminals to abuse our platform or evade justice.”
