Telegram is a famous social messaging platform undergoing investigation for alleged involvement in extortion, gambling, and share market fraud.
After the recent breaking news of the Telegram CEO’s arrest in Paris on 24th August 2024, the application itself is falling under scrutiny for alleged involvement in extortion, gambling, and stock market fraud. The Indian government has handed over the case to the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (14C), which will now lead the investigation.
The French authorities arrested Durov and detained him over concerns related to the Telegram app’s content moderation policies. The policies of the application are one of the key USPs tat provide it a steep competitive edge over other players. End-to-end encrypted messages, secret media sharing, and self-destructing communication, among others, are some of the features that a majority of its users misuse on a regular basis.
With growing global popularity, the application’s discreet communication features have become the go-to solution for drug traffickers, illegal adult content distributors, and many more. Only on the basis of reports sent by users can any of these channels be put under monitoring or banned.
The case has also brought other digital leaders like Elon Musk and Edward Snowden into the spotlight for voicing their concerns over the implications of freedom of speech and digital privacy. “On his platform, he allowed an incalculable number of offenses and crimes to be committed, for which he did nothing to moderate or cooperate,” said a French source directly connected to the case.
The platform that ensures strict privacy for its users cannot be responsible for the misuse that they choose as an action. Telegram also boasts of its decentralized nature, meaning it hosts servers from across the world. This makes the investigation even more difficult as tracing the communication channels becomes almost impossible. If the investigation fails, the Telegram application may face a permanent ban in India, affecting millions of its users.
Despite tough competition from tech giants like WhatsApp, Telegram has emerged as one of India's top social messaging platforms. Users who want to continue using secret texting apps that provide similar services will need to choose an alternative option till the investigation is cleared.
