Pavel Durov Decries Ongoing French Probe, Calls Arrest a “Hostage Tactic” Against Encrypted Apps

Telegram founder Pavel Durov has marked the one-year anniversary of his arrest in France by denouncing the case as baseless and politically motivated. In a new Telegram post, Durov argued that investigators have yet to uncover wrongdoing despite holding him accountable for alleged crimes committed by users of the platform.

Durov was arrested in August 2024 on 12 charges, including complicity in money laundering and enabling criminal activity. While he remains under formal investigation, he insists the accusations are “legally and logically absurd,” emphasizing that Telegram follows the same moderation and compliance practices as its peers.

“A year later, the criminal investigation against me is still struggling to find anything wrong,” Durov stated. He reiterated that Telegram has always complied with binding legal requests from French authorities. His detention last year drew international condemnation: Edward Snowden accused French President Emmanuel Macron of “taking hostages to gain access to private communications,” while the TON Society branded the move “a direct assault on a basic human right.”

The case has become a focal point in the global struggle over encryption. Several EU countries are backing the controversial “Chat Control” regulation, which would force platforms like WhatsApp, Signal, and Telegram to scan all private messages. Russia, meanwhile, has banned foreign messengers entirely, rolling out its state-controlled “Max” app, which will be pre-installed on all smartphones starting September 1.

Despite these pressures, Durov maintains that Telegram will abandon markets rather than install backdoors or weaken encryption. For now, legal restrictions force him to report to France every two weeks as the investigation drags on without a trial date—an ordeal that continues to fuel debate over whether tech executives should be held liable for user behavior on their platforms.