Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated on Monday that Pavel Durov, the CEO of Telegram who was detained in France, was brought down by his “too open” approach to managing the social media network.
TakeAway Points:
- Sergei Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia, stated on Monday that Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram who was detained in France, was brought down by his “too open” style of managing the social media network.
- Lavrov emphasised the Kremlin’s assertion that the investigation into Durov is a part of a bigger Western political plot to exercise influence over Russia in a speech to students at the foreign ministry-run, top MGIMO university in Moscow.
- South Korean police have opened an inquiry into Telegram to see whether the encrypted messaging service was involved in the dissemination of sexually explicit deepfake video, according to the Yonhap news agency.
Telegram’s CEO management approach
A French judge put Russian-born Durov under formal investigation last week for suspected complicity in running an online platform that allows illicit transactions, child sex abuse images, drug trafficking, and fraud.
His lawyer has said it is “absurd” to suggest he should be held responsible for any crimes committed on the app, which has nearly 1 billion users and is widely popular in Russia, Ukraine, and other former Soviet countries.
Lavrov, in a speech to students at Moscow’s elite MGIMO university run by the foreign ministry, echoed the Kremlin’s position that the probe into Durov is part of a larger political ploy by the West to exert power over Russia.
“Pavel Durov was too free. He didn’t listen to Western advice on moderating his brainchild.” Lavrov said.
Russia, after years of pressure on Durov and his tech ventures, has rallied behind him.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said last week that there were no negotiations between the Kremlin and Durov, who also holds passports from France and the United Arab Emirates.
“The main thing is that what is happening in France does not turn into political persecution,” Peskov said last Thursday.
“We know that the president of France has denied any connection (of the case) with politics, but on the other hand, certain accusations are being made.”
French President Emmanuel Macron has denied any political motive in the tech entrepreneur’s detention.
Lavrov earlier warned that Durov’s arrest—the first of a major tech CEO—had plunged relations between Moscow and Paris to a new nadir.
Korea’s authorities have begun investigating whether Telegram facilitates cyber-sex crimes
South Korean police have opened an inquiry into Telegram to see whether the encrypted messaging service was involved in the dissemination of sexually explicit deepfake video, according to the Yonhap news agency.
Yonhap quoted the head of the National Office of Investigation. The office’s cyber investigation bureau declined to comment on the report.
The launch of an investigation would follow public and political outrage over digital deepfake pornography featuring South Korean women, with local media reporting such content is often found in Telegram chatrooms.
It would also go one step further than comments from the commissioner of the National Policy Agency, Cho Ji-ho, earlier on Monday, who said his agency was reviewing whether to investigate secure messaging apps by charging them with abetting crimes.
Authorities in South Korea last week pledged a crackdown on sexually exploitative deepfake crimes—one that has coincided with a French investigation into Pavel Durov, Telegram’s Russian-born founder, as authorities there probe organized crime on the platform.
Asked in parliament about criminal activities on Telegram, Cho said investigations into secure message providers have proven complicated and time-consuming.
Telegram did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on Monday. Last week, it said it actively moderates harmful content on its platform, including illegal pornography.
South Korea is the country most targeted by deepfake pornography, with its singers and actresses constituting 53% of the individuals featured in such deepfakes, according to a 2023 report on deepfakes globally by Security Hero, a U.S. startup focused on identity theft protection.
Police in the country say the number of deepfake sex crime cases they have taken on so far this year has surged to 297. That compares to 156 for all of 2021 when data was first collated. Most victims and perpetrators are teenagers, they say.
In addition to urging social media firms to more actively cooperate with the deleting and blocking of such content, South Korea’s media regulator has asked French authorities for regular cooperation in Telegram-related problems and facilitating direct communication with Telegram.
Additionally, the South Korean government said on Friday it will push for tougher laws to make the purchase or viewing of sexually exploitative deepfakes a criminal act.
