While Twitter, Facebook and Instagram collaborate with state authorities, this is not the case for Telegram messaging. Its founder Pavel Durov, a Russian billionaire, was arrested this Saturday August 24 by French law enforcement at Le Bourget airport in the Paris region.
A lot of illegal content is published without governments being able to act. Telegram almost never collaborates with the authorities who seek to prosecute the perpetrators of crimes and offenses posted with complete “impunity” on the platform. The messaging system hosts terrorist, child criminal, hateful, racist content, etc. illegal content which is not however moderated by Telegram. Messaging claims to be a platform “ safe and airtight » even towards laws and governments.
Telegram does not “censor” anything!
In reality, Telegram chooses not to “censor” anything even if the content is outside the legal framework and morals. Messaging ensures confidentiality of its users even if they can be reprimanded by the courts. Much criticized, the Telegram platform is so secure that it is even used by certain powers to exchange securely. In Russia, opponents of Vladimir Putin use this “social network” a lot.
Its founder, the Franco-Russian billionaire Pavel Durov, was arrested by French police when he had just landed at Le Bourget airport in the Paris region. While some saw this arrest as a political and geopolitical conspiracy, the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron affirmed that this was not the case on his X account: “In a rule of law, on social networks as in real life, freedoms are exercised within a framework established by law to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights. (…) The arrest of the president of Telegram on French territory took place as part of an ongoing legal investigation. This is in no way a political decision. It is up to the judges to decide.”he said.
Also read: What do we know about these Russian spies discovered in France?
The “Russian Mark Zuckerberg”
In 2006, Pavel Durov became a young graduate of the University of Saint Petersburg in Russia. Aged 22, he launched his first social network called Vkontakte. The success is such that the young man’s social network becomes the reference in Russia ahead Facebook. Quickly, Pavel Durov was nicknamed the “ Mark Zuckerberg Russian“. The Kremlin began to take a serious interest in this young entrepreneur, who then decided to sell the social network to people close to those in power. Oddly, in 2014, shortly after, Pavel Durov left Russia…
In reality, Pavel Durov refuses several indications and obligations imposed by the Russian authorities. The Kremlin asks him to censor certain publications. However, the founder refuses. At the same time, Durov refused to give the Russian security services (FSB) the personal data of certain users of the platform who were pro-European and Ukrainian.
Telegram: an essential tool for Russians?
Before flee Russiain 2014, Pavel Durov decided to join forces with his brother Nikolai. In 2013, they launched Telegram messaging which met with immediate and dazzling success. The following year, he fled Russia and settled in Dubai. He gets the French nationality in 2021. Even today, the platform is enjoying significant success but is at the same time extremely criticized for its excesses. However, Pavel Durov assures him that violent contents or those calling for murders are deleted.
In addition to these criticisms, others suspect him of maintaining secret relations with Vladimir Putin’s government. According to some sources, the application was partly financed by people close to the Kremlin. Surprisingly, Telegram was banned before being authorized in 2020 at the discretion of the Russian government. At 39 years old, Pavel Durov saw his police custody extended until Wednesday August 28, 2024 in France.
