As Russia launches criminal probe against Telegram CEO, the app’s critics come to its defence | CBC Radio

Pavel Durov, CEO of the messaging app Telegram, has dismissed Russia’s criminal investigation against him as a “sad spectacle of a state afraid of its own people.”

Durov, a Russian-born billionaire who resides in the United Arab Emirates, made the statement on X while confirming Russian state media reports that the country’s Federal Security Service is investigating him for “aiding terrorism.”

“Each day, the authorities fabricate new pretexts to restrict Russians’ access to Telegram as they seek to suppress the right to privacy and free speech,” Durov wrote.

Access Now — a Berlin-based digital rights non-profit that has been vocally critical of Telegram’s security and privacy in the past — says Durov is absolutely correct.

“I tend to agree with Durov, and it’s hard to believe that I’m saying this,” Natalia Krapiva, senior technical legal counsel for Access Now, told As It Happens host Nil Köksal.

“But in this case, Russia is definitely trying to suppress freedom of expression and access to information of their own people.”

It’s not the first time Durov has faced criminal investigations. In 2024, he was arrested in Paris over allegations that his platform was being used for illicit activity, including drug trafficking and the distribution of child sexual abuse images. He was later allowed to fly home to Dubai as that investigation continues.

‘A danger to our country’

The move is just the latest escalation in Russia’s ongoing efforts to clamp down on Telegram, which is widely used by Russians — including Russian troops fighting in Ukraine.  

Just two weeks ago, Russia’s communications watchdog, Roskomnadzor, announced it was restricting access to Telegram because the company refuses to abide by Russian law.

Russia hasn’t officially confirmed the details of its probe into Durov. But the official state newspaper, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, reported he is being investigated for alleged assistance to terrorist activities after the app was used as “a tool for hybrid threats.”

When asked about the case, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday that the Federal Security Service had gathered information on a “large number of violations” by Telegram, as well as content that could “potentially pose a danger to our country.” He said Telegram had been unwilling to co-operate with the authorities.

“Based on this, the relevant agencies are taking measures they deem appropriate,” Peskov said. 

Part of a wider crackdown

Telegram isn’t the only app Russia has targeted. The government has restricted FaceTime, blocked messaging apps Signal, Viber and WhatsApp, and banned Facebook and Instragram.

While it cracks down on privately owned foreign platforms, it’s pushing people toward the state-owned alternative, MAX, which it bills as a one-stop shop for messaging, online government services, making payments and more.

“Russia, it looks like, has invested a lot of resources into promoting this app. They have used celebrities. They have also put out messages saying: ‘Well, this would be the only way to communicate with government services. You really need this,'” Krapiva said.

But Krapiva warns MAX could be used as a tool for surveillance by Russia, especially if used by journalists or activists.

The platform openly declares it will share user data with authorities upon request.

“So we definitely advise people against using,” Krapiva said. “Or, if they have to use it, ideally have it on a separate phone that they don’t have any sensitive information on, especially if they’re a high-risk user.”

An all-Russian internet

So far, Krapiva says, Russians don’t seem eager to make a complete switch. 

She says Telegram use remains high in the country, despite the government-imposed service disruptions, as people use services like virtual private networks (VPNs) to circumvent the rules.

“The statistics are a little bit difficult to get, but our understanding and hearing from the Russian internet digital rights experts on the ground is that, indeed, the usage of VPNs has increased dramatically in Russia,” she said.

It also helps, she says, that state tools like MAX simply aren’t at the same level of quality as their private, foreign-owned counterparts. 

But Russia is now cracking down on VPN services, too, she said, blocking content that advertises them so Russians don’t know they exist or how to find them.

The ultimate goal, she says, is to force people into a Russia-only online world, where the government can fully control the flow of information.

“This is a really depressing, disturbing scenario,” she said.