Telegram founder claims case is baseless and criticizes French government

Telegram founder Pavel Durov has provided an update on his legal battle with the authorities in France, claiming that a criminal investigation into the case has not unearthed any proof of foul play on his part.

Durov, in a post on Telegram on Sunday, called his arrest last month by French police “unprecedented,” and insisted that it was “legally and logically absurd” to punish a tech chief for acts of independent site users.

“A year later, the ‘criminal investigation’ against me is still struggling to find anything that I or Telegram did wrong. Our moderation practices align with industry standards, and Telegram has always responded to every legally binding request from France.”

Durov said he still has to report to France every two weeks and that there was no date for an appeal, describing the case as a “weird detention” and saying it had done “irreparable damage” to France’s reputation as a free country.

Durov pushes back as France intensifies scrutiny over Telegram’s content moderation

The crypto community has widely condemned the Telegram CEO’s arrest. Human rights activists and free speech campaigners have also accused the French government of forcing him to censor Telegram. 

Durov was then charged and initially stopped from exiting France, while investigators probed the platform’s content moderation rules, accusing it of featuring harmful content.

Last year, French President Emmanuel Macron dismissed allegations of political motivation in the arrest when he said in an August 26 X post that freedoms must be protected “within a legal framework” to guarantee citizens and their rights. His comments drew backlash, including Helius CEO Mert Mumtaz, who responded: “Why aren’t you personally in jail for not controlling 100% of all crime in France?”.

Durov has said Telegram obeys “all” legal requests but will leave all jurisdictions where censorship is mandated. He also reiterated that the platform will not violate user privacy by sharing encryption keys or creating backdoors.

As earlier reported by Cryptopolitan, his recent appearance at a Paris court shows that French authorities continue to press the case. This comes even as Telegram has stepped up cooperation.

The case against Durov reflects the mounting friction between law enforcement and tech platforms over who should bear responsibility for online content, as governments around the world tighten their scrutiny of social media and messaging services. It also marks yet another instance of Durov openly criticizing French authorities.

 In September, he addressed his legal troubles in France by calling out authorities for sidestepping official EU channels and interrogating him directly. 

In his defense, Durov pointed to Telegram’s active moderation practices, including the daily removal of harmful content and collaboration with NGOs, while reaffirming his commitment to safeguarding the nearly one billion users on the platform.

TON adoption grows as Telegram’s Web3 scene expands

Telegram has become a hub for Web3 activity thanks to its integration with The Open Network (TON), whose native token, Toncoin (TON -2.43%), ranks as the world’s twenty-first largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, according to price data. Toncoin has also been adopted by Verb Technology, a digital asset treasury (DAT) company that holds more than 8% of the token’s circulating supply and plans to rebrand as Ton Strategy Company.

User activity on TON spiked in the weeks following Pavel Durov’s arrest, though engagement has since eased from those highs, according to data from The Block.

Durov was first permitted to leave France in March to travel to Dubai, where Telegram is headquartered, and his family resides. Under an appeals court ruling, he may travel only to Dubai for 14 consecutive days per trip, provided he notifies the investigating judge one week in advance. Travel to any other destination requires separate authorization from a French judge.

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