{"id":7227,"date":"2024-08-27T15:06:06","date_gmt":"2024-08-27T15:06:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/2024\/08\/27\/arrest-of-billionaire-telegram-founder-not-a-political-decision-says-french-president\/"},"modified":"2024-08-27T15:06:06","modified_gmt":"2024-08-27T15:06:06","slug":"arrest-of-billionaire-telegram-founder-not-a-political-decision-says-french-president","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/2024\/08\/27\/arrest-of-billionaire-telegram-founder-not-a-political-decision-says-french-president\/","title":{"rendered":"Arrest of billionaire Telegram founder not a political decision, says French president"},"content":{"rendered":"

The arrest of the billionaire Telegram founder on French soil was not a political decision, the country’s president has said.<\/p>\n

Pavel Durov, who created the encrypted messaging app<\/strong>, was detained after his private jet landed<\/strong> at Le Bourget airport on the outskirts of Paris on Saturday.<\/p>\n

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He has been arrested and detained as part of a cyber criminality investigation – concerning crimes related to illicit transactions, child sexual abuse images and fraud – the Paris prosecutor has said.<\/p>\n

In his first public comment on the matter, President Emmanuel Macron said his country “is deeply committed” to freedom of expression but “freedoms are upheld within a legal framework, both on social media and in real life, to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights”.<\/p>\n

He denounced “false information” about Durov’s arrest: “The arrest of the president of Telegram on French soil took place as part of an ongoing judicial investigation. It is in no way a political decision. It is up to the judges to rule on the matter.”<\/p>\n

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Russian government officials have expressed outrage at Durov’s arrest<\/strong>, with some calling it politically driven and saying it showed the West’s double standards on freedom of speech.<\/p>\n

But this outcry has raised eyebrows among Kremlin critics – in 2018, Russian authorities tried to block Telegram themselves, but failed and eventually withdrew the ban in 2020.<\/p>\n

In a statement posted on its platform, Telegram said it has nothing to hide<\/strong>, as it abides by EU laws including the digital services act, and its moderation is “within industry standards and constantly improving”.<\/p>\n

“It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform,” Telegram’s post said.<\/p>\n

“Almost a billion users globally use Telegram as a means of communication and as a source of vital information. We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all.”<\/p>\n

Telegram was founded by Durov and his brother in the wake of the Russian government’s crackdown after mass pro-democracy protests that rocked Moscow at the end of 2011 and 2012. He left after losing control of his previous social media company, Vkontakte (VK).<\/p>\n

It is now one of the most downloaded apps in the world with close to one billion users<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

It offers end-to-end encryption – effectively protecting data from being intercepted – and has a strong focus on privacy.<\/p>\n

But these features have made it a popular place for criminal activity and it was recently exploited by far-right activists who sparked riots<\/strong> in the UK over the Southport stabbings<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

This post appeared first on sky.com<\/div>\n

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