Telegram Will Now Share Usersâ IP Addresses and Phone Numbers With Governments in Response to Legal Requests
by Christina Maas, Reclaimthenet.org, September 23, 2024
| Telegram, the messaging app that once positioned itself as the rebelâs answer to Big Tech surveillance, has made a sharp U-turn on the âwe protect your data at all costsâ highway. On Monday, the company quietly updated its privacy policy to allow for the disclosure of user informationâlike those precious IP addresses and phone numbersâto law enforcement, but only, of course, if they present a valid legal request. As we all know, no one has ever stretched the definition of âvalidâ to fit their agenda, right? This revelation comes hot on the heels of a little incident back in August, when Telegramâs CEO Pavel Durov found himself in handcuffs, detained by French authorities. What was the crime? Well, it appears Telegram was accused of playing hardball with French law enforcement, refusing to hand over data, leading to Durov's arrest. It seems law enforcement didnât take kindly to that level of noncompliance, especially after making 2,460 unanswered requests for information. The Policy Flip-Flop The new policy revision is a complete about-face from the one Telegramâs loyal fans were sold on. The old rules were crystal clear. Telegram might give up your detailsâyour IP address and phone numberâbut only if you were a suspect in a terror case. The policy even reassured everyone that this kind of handover had never happened. Not anymore. Now, Telegram has widened the net. According to the newly revised policy, if you violate Telegramâs Terms of Serviceâyou know, the thing no one ever readsâthey may hand over your info if they get a âvalidâ order. The language is dripping with corporate hedging: âIf Telegram receives a valid order from the relevant judicial authorities that confirms you're a suspect in a case involving criminal activities that violate the Telegram Terms of Service, we will perform a legal analysis of the request and may disclose your IP address and phone number to the relevant authorities.â |
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Of course, Telegram is still committed to transparencyâat least on paper. The company promises to disclose all such incidents in its quarterly transparency reports, which, conveniently, can be accessed via a dedicated bot. Durovâs Declaration: Aimed at Who, Exactly? Durov took to Telegram to tell users, âWe have updated our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, ensuring they are consistent across the world.â |
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He continued, âWeâve made it clear that the IP addresses and phone numbers of those who violate our rules can be disclosed to relevant authorities in response to valid legal requests.âDurov further added, âThese measures should discourage criminals. Telegram Search is meant for finding friends and discovering news, not for promoting illegal goods. We won't let bad actors jeopardize the integrity of our platform for almost a billion users.â The French Connection But what really forced Telegramâs hand? Letâs rewind to Durovâs August airport arrest, where things started to get clearer. After allegedly over 2,400 ignored requests for data, French authorities had had enough. They brought in the National Gendarmerie to get to the bottom of Telegramâs refusal to cooperate. Apparently, turning over data wasnât an option until they started detaining CEOs. |
