Telegram CEO makes first public comments since French authorities targeted him and his app

PARIS (AP) — Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov is vowing to step up efforts to fight crime on the messaging app, his first public comments since French authorities brought initial charges against him for allegedly allowing the platform to be used for criminal activity.

In a Telegram post, Durov defended himself against the French judicial investigation, suggesting that he personally should not be targeted.

“Using pre-smartphone laws to prosecute CEOs for crimes committed by third parties on the platform they run is the wrong approach,” the post reads. “Building technology is hard enough. No innovator will ever create new tools if they know they can be held personally liable for potential abuses of those tools.”

While Durov stressed that Telegram is not “some anarchist paradise,” he said that Telegram’s growing user base “has created growing pains that have made it easier for criminals to abuse our platform.”

“That’s why my personal goal is to make sure that we significantly improve in this regard. We have already started this process internally and I will share with you details on our progress soon,” he said.