A New York Times analysis of more than 3.2 million Telegram messages from 16,000 channels found that the messaging platform has been “inundated” with illegal and extremist activity.
Specifically, The Times found 1,500 channels operated by white supremacists, two dozen channels selling weapons, and at least 22 channels where MDMA, cocaine, heroin and other drugs were advertised for delivery.
The company’s founder and CEO Pavel Durov was arrested in France last month, with authorities alleging that Telegram’s lack of content moderation made Durov an accomplice to illegal activity on the platform.
The platform subsequently updated its website to allow abuse reports, and Durov has been posting on his Telegram channel, arguing, “Using laws from the pre-smartphone era to charge a CEO with crimes committed by third parties on the platform he manages is a misguided approach.”