Recently, media such as France's Le Monde reported that Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, was briefly detained last summer in France and was "forced" to start complying with EU regulations.
In response to this grossly inaccurate report, Durov himself made a stern statement through his official Telegram channel, refuting the false accusations.
Founder Personally Clarifies the Facts
In his statement, Durov clearly stated: "Telegram has never refused to comply with EU regulations, including the Digital Services Act (DSA), and we have always taken our legal obligations seriously." He specifically emphasized that French law enforcement authorities only began submitting formal requests to Telegram under the DSA from August 2023, and the platform has always complied with legal requirements.
"Thanks to this standardized request process, French courts have successfully obtained information such as the IP addresses of users involved in several criminal cases." Durov added, "This compliance process has been public and transparent, making it even more puzzling why French law enforcement previously did not make requests through legal channels."
Compliance Process Has Been Standardized
It is understood that Telegram, as a communication platform that values user privacy, has always followed the principle of "legal, legitimate, and necessary" in its data handling policies. The platform has a dedicated law enforcement request response system, and when it receives a formal request that complies with legal provisions, it provides necessary assistance within the bounds of the law.
Durov specifically pointed out: "The French media's claim of 'detention forcing compliance' is completely unfounded. Telegram has never evaded any regulatory obligations, and we always adhere to legal frameworks in cooperating with legitimate government inquiries."
EU Digital Governance Attracts Attention
This incident has also sparked widespread discussion in the industry about EU digital platform governance. As regulations such as the Digital Services Act are implemented more thoroughly, tech companies face new challenges in compliance operations in Europe. Analysts note that Telegram's public response demonstrates the efforts of tech companies to balance privacy protection with legal compliance.
Currently, Telegram has not provided further clarification on whether the French police have made new data requests. However, Durov's clear stance has already delineated the factual boundaries of this controversy: Telegram has always been a follower of EU regulations, not a violator.
Industry insiders believe that this incident reflects the delicate relationship between media oversight and transparency of tech companies in the digital age. Against the backdrop of the EU's strengthening regulation of digital platforms, how to establish a more standardized and transparent communication mechanism between government and businesses is a topic that all parties need to consider together.
