Telegram CEO Pavel Durov will hand over data to the government

Telegram’s embattled CEO, Pavel Durov, has agreed to hand over the IP addresses and phone numbers of users of his encrypted messaging app to government authorities that make a legitimate request, sources have reported.

Durov, a Franco-Russian billionaire who was arrested in France last month and charged with a range of crimes including facilitating the distribution of child pornography through his popular messaging app, announced on Monday that Telegram had changed its terms of service to deter criminals from using it.

The decision is a departure from Telegram’s previous policy, which often disregarded government requests for user data.

Telegram has amassed a user base of hundreds of millions of people worldwide due to its reputation as an instant messaging service that protects privacy, does not collect data, and does not cooperate with government officials.

The app offers end-to-end encryption, so only the sender and recipient can read the exchanged messages.

However, critics say Telegram is the preferred communication method for criminal organizations engaged in a range of illegal activities, including money laundering, human trafficking and the distribution of child pornography.

Telegram collects very little data compared to other messaging platforms. In the past, the company has said it would only consider sharing data with governments if the request was supported by a court order that is legally binding in the jurisdiction where it operates.

The company is headquartered in the United Arab Emirates, of which Durov also holds citizenship.

As Durov wrote in a post on his Telegram channel, the new, updated terms of service appear to expand on the company’s policies, “ensuring their consistency across the globe.”

Earlier this month, Durov pledged to step up efforts to combat crime on his messaging app after French authorities brought preliminary charges against him for facilitating illegal activities.

Telegram has quietly removed a note from its “FAQ” page that stated “we do not process any requests related to them.”

In a Telegram post on September 5, Durov defended himself against the French judicial investigation, suggesting that he should not be the target of personal attacks.

“Using pre-smartphone laws to accuse a company CEO of crimes committed by third parties on the platform he manages is the wrong approach,” the post reads.

“Building technology is hard enough. No innovator will ever build new tools if they know they can be held personally liable for potential misuse 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.

In late August, Durov was detained by French investigators at Le Bourget airport near Paris.

The French accused Durov of, among other things, using Telegram to spread child sexual abuse material and drug trafficking. The platform also refused to provide information or documents to investigators, despite being required by law.

Durov, who has long claimed he has “nothing to hide”, was unable to leave France for the duration of the investigation.

With postal wires