Update from Pavel Durov on Ongoing Case in France

Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram, provided insights into his ongoing case in France, stating the criminal investigation against him is “struggling” to find any evidence of wrongdoing.

Durov characterized his August 2024 arrest by French authorities as “unprecedented” and criticized the notion of holding a tech executive responsible for independent users’ actions as “legally and logically absurd.” He mentioned in a Telegram post:

> “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 noted, “One year after this strange arrest, I still have to return to France every 14 days, with no appeal date in sight,” and warned that the French government has harmed its image as a free country.

Source: Pavel Durov

The arrest sparked backlash from the crypto community, human rights groups, and free speech advocates, who accused the French government of targeting Durov to pressure him into censoring Telegram.

Public Reaction to Durov’s Arrest

Durov faced charges and was initially barred from leaving France over a probe into Telegram’s content moderation policies, with accusations that the platform hosted harmful content.

French President Emmanuel Macron denied political motivations behind the arrest, leading to accusations of censorship from the crypto community. In a translated August 26 X post, Macron stated:

> “In a state governed by the rule of law, freedoms are upheld within a legal framework, both on social media and in real life, to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights.”

Mert Mumtaz, CEO of node provider Helius, challenged Macron, asking: “Why aren’t you personally in jail for not controlling 100% of all crime in France?”

Durov has consistently affirmed that Telegram adheres to all legal law enforcement requests and maintains the stance of exiting any jurisdiction that imposes censorship. He reiterated that Telegram will not compromise user privacy by surrendering encryption keys or creating backdoors in the messaging application.