The French government’s stunning arrest of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov has increased concerns that technology entrepreneurs prioritizing internet freedom of speech will not find haven in Europe.
Mr. Durov, who oversees the encrypted Telegram messaging and social media platform, was arrested Saturday upon arrival at a Paris airport. The French government said Monday that the arrest was part of an investigation into the criminal activity of a “person unnamed” on several charges, involving complicity in organized fraud, possessing pornographic images of minors, drug trafficking and more.
A former White House National Security Council aide warned X’s Elon Musk, who spoke out in support of Mr. Durov online, to be “nervous” as a result. The leader of Rumble, a YouTube rival, quickly left the European continent.
In Britain, arrests over online posts began this month. Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mark Rowley pledged in an interview aired on Sky News to “come after” those beyond the country’s borders.
French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday denied any political bias behind Mr. Durov’s arrest, but the government has acknowledged the arrest is connected to the tech platform’s approach to censoring content.
Jean-Michel Bernigaud, secretary general of French police agency OFMIN, said Mr. Durov’s arrest was attributable to Telegram’s failure to sufficiently police the content on its site.
“At the heart of this issue is the lack of moderation and cooperation of the platform (which has nearly 1 billion users), particularly in the fight against pedophilia,” Mr. Bernigaud said Monday on LinkedIn, according to an English-language translation.
Mr. Macron sought to downplay the role of politics in the arrest.
“The arrest of the president of Telegram on French soil took place as part of an ongoing judicial investigation,” Mr. Macron said on X. “It is in no way a political decision. It is up to the judges to rule on the matter.”
Mr. Macron said France is committed to free expression but must follow a legal framework to protect citizens and their rights.
The arrest received praise from those who have expressed concerns about uncensored speech and disinformation online.
Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a former White House National Security Council aide, said Mr. Durov’s arrest had implications for other social media platforms, including Mr. Musk’s X.
“There’s a growing intolerance for platforming disinfo & malign influence & a growing appetite for accountability. Musk should be nervous,” Mr. Vindman said on X.
Mr. Musk amplified messages from X users sharing the concern that his American social media platform and the video-based platform Rumble could face a governmental crackdown after TikTok and Telegram. Legislation to force the sale of the U.S. operations of China-founded TikTok, which carried a threatened ban if the platform is not sold, became law earlier this year.
Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovski said on X that Mr. Macron was lying. Mr. Pavlovski said he waited to post on social media until after safely departing Europe and said France had threatened Rumble.
“We had to shut down Rumble in France because you have NO [commitment] to freedom of expression,” Mr. Pavlovski said on X in reply to Mr. Macron.
In a statement Sunday, Telegram said it had not violated European Union speech regulations and could not be held liable for every comment its hundreds of millions of users post.
“It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform,” the company said.
Worries about the abuse of Telegram have magnified since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Because conversations on the site are encrypted, Telegram has carved out a significant niche in countries where freedom of speech is curtailed, such as Russia, Iran and India.
The service is also heavily used in Ukraine, and pro-Ukrainian activist hackers assembled under the “IT Army of Ukraine” banner on Telegram to organize and communicate.
Russian-speaking hackers also gather on Telegram. In 2022, the hacking group Killnet published its list of U.S. targets on Telegram after flooding state government websites with traffic.
Telegram and Mr. Durov have been caught in the crossfire in the global confrontation between Russia and the West.
In an interview earlier this year, Mr. Durov, reportedly born in Russia with citizenship in multiple nations including France, told conservative commentator Tucker Carlson about his clashes with the U.S. government. Mr. Durov, whose technology empire-building career has earned him the nickname the “Russian Zuckerberg,” told Mr. Carlson that the FBI sought a back door to access his platform and he did not want to provide that access.
The Associated Press reported that Mr. Durov said he rejected the Russian government’s demands involving a previous venture, which came under pressure after pro-democracy demonstrations in Russia in 2011 and 2012.
Russian officials have reportedly expressed concern on their Telegram channels about Mr. Durov’s arrest, the Financial Times reported.
The Russian Embassy in France said on X that it reached out to French authorities for an explanation for Mr. Durov’s arrest, according to an English-language translation.
Mr. Macron acknowledged the tension in taking legal action against the Telegram founder. He said France was “deeply committed to freedom of expression,” but “in a state governed by the rule of law, freedoms are upheld within a legal framework, both on social media and in real life.”
• Ryan Lovelace can be reached at rlovelace@washingtontimes.com.
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