Telegram’s policy U-turn! An audit team has been set up to hand over illegal user information

Messaging app Telegram said it has changed its terms of service and privacy policy and created a dedicated team of moderation people who use artificial intelligence to hide problematic content from search results.

IP addresses and phone numbers of users who violate our rules will also be turned over to authorities with a search warrant or other valid legal request.

Telegram changes terms of service and privacy policy

CEO Pavel Durov posted on Telegram on Monday that the changes to the terms of service and privacy policy "should deter criminals."
Durov said search on Telegram is more powerful than other messaging apps because it allows users to find public channels and bots. Unfortunately, this feature is abused by a few to sell illegal goods.

Over the past few weeks, Telegram’s dedicated team of moderators have managed to make Telegram searches safer using artificial intelligence. Once problematic content is discovered, it can no longer be accessed. If users still find unsafe or illegal content in Telegram search, they can report it to Telegram via @SearchReport.

To further deter criminals from abusing Telegram Search, Telegram has updated its Terms of Service and Privacy Policy to ensure they are consistent around the world. It also makes it clear that the IP addresses and phone numbers of users who violate the rules may be disclosed to the relevant authorities in accordance with valid legal requirements.

Durov believes these measures should deter perpetrators. Because the purpose of Telegram’s search is to help users find friends and discover news, not to promote illegal goods. Telegram will not let bad actors jeopardize the integrity of its platform of nearly one billion users.

related reading：Pavel Durov said that he has severely cracked down on illegal and criminal activities on Telegram, and the surge in users has led to negligence in supervision

Experts question whether this move will meet regulatory requirements

The announcement marks a significant shift for the platform's Russian-born co-founder Durov, who was detained by French authorities at an airport north of Paris last month, the BBC reported. He was accused of failing to effectively control criminal content on the platform, an incident that has reignited discussions about free speech and the responsibilities of technology companies in platform management.

Critics say Telegram has become a breeding ground for misinformation, child pornography and horror-related content, in part because its groups feature allows up to 200,000 members. By comparison, Meta-owned WhatsApp limits group sizes to 1,000 people.

John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab, said that after Durov's arrest, many began to question whether Telegram was truly a safe place for political dissent.

Daphne Keller of Stanford University's Center for Internet and Society said "making problematic data harder to find" may not be enough to satisfy French or European law. She questioned whether the company's changes would be enough to satisfy authorities seeking information about targets of the investigation, including who they were communicating with and the content of those messages.