Durov Accuses French Spies of Pressure Over Censorship

(MENAFN) Telegram founder Pavel Durov has provided further details about an alleged attempt by France's foreign intelligence agency to pressure him into censoring conservative voices on his platform.

He dismissed their claimed humanitarian concerns as a mere "manipulation tactic."

In a statement on Sunday, Durov accused the head of the Directorate-General for External Security (DGSE), Nicolas Lerner, of requesting that he removes Romanian Telegram channels ahead of the country’s presidential election runoff.

The DGSE, however, denied the claims of political interference, stating that their contact with Durov was solely to "firmly remind him of his company’s responsibilities, and his own personally, in preventing terrorist and child pornography threats."

On Monday, Durov reiterated that the French foreign intelligence had met with him, purportedly to combat terrorism and child pornography.

However, he clarified that child pornography was not even discussed.

According to Durov, the primary request was for IP addresses of suspected terrorists in France, but the agency’s main focus was on geopolitics, particularly in Romania, Moldova, and Ukraine.

Durov also emphasized that Telegram has been actively working to address child abuse, mentioning their efforts through "content fingerprint bans, dedicated moderation teams, NGO hotlines, and daily transparency reports on banned content."

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