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Telegram Faces Further Scrutiny with Criminal Probe by India’s Cybercrime Unit
- Telegram’s week keeps going from bad to worse, following the company’s CEO and founder Pavel Durov being arrested by French authorities over the weekend.
- The Indian Government is investigating Telegram’s use within its nation, in particular assessing its role in facilitating extortion and illegal gambling.
- For now, the Government believes Telegram abides by IT laws, which should see it survive a potential nationwide banning.
- However, the outcome of the Indian investigation could see restrictions placed upon the platform’s use.
The hits keep coming for popular messaging and community platform Telegram, just days after the founder and CEO was arrested in France. Pavel Durov was apprehended by Parisian authorities as police investigated whether Telegram’s Chief has done enough to prevent and moderate criminal activity (such as fraud, terrorism financing and child pornography) on the platform.
Now, the Indian government is putting the blowtorch on Telegram’s use within its nation. Officials are looking into how the platform may have facilitated several illegal activities, in particular gambling and extortion.
Related: Telegram Founder and CEO Arrested in France, TON Price Plummets
Telegram Not Currently in Violation of IT Laws
India’s Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology will be spearheading the probe, examining Telegram’s role in criminal communications conducted via the platform.
For now, officials do not believe Telegram has violated any of India’s Information Technology Rules. The current investigation will focus on complaints against the messaging platform, whether it has broken any laws, and what actions should be taken (if any) to prevent further crime.
Toncoin Shows Signs of Life Despite Telegram’s Troubles
There are a couple of roadblocks for the Indian Government to overcome as part of the inquiry.
According to an anonymous source from the Government, certain data and communications may be hard to come by due to Telegram’s lack of an Indian office.
There is difficulty in dealing with Telegram because they have no presence in India…We will examine the kind of material that we get and based on our laws, we will come to a conclusion.
Anonymous Indian Government Official
Some have speculated that, if the investigation reveals widespread criminal behaviour, Telegram could even be banned in India. This outcome seems unlikely though, primarily due to Telegram’s compliance with India’s IT rules.
Related: Russia Soon to Start Crypto Exchange Trials and Digital Cross-Border Payments
However, it is another hit to the under-siege platform which may see similar investigations coming from other governments around the world.
Toncoin was smashed upon the news of Telegram’s CEO being arrested in France – however has shown signs of recovery in the days since. TON is still down 20% over the past week, but has bounced 5% in the last 24 hours.
Author
Ben Knight
Ben Knight is a writer and editor from Melbourne with a passion for all things music and finance. He enjoys turning complex topics – especially the technical details of cryptocurrency – into digestible bites that anybody can understand. He acquired his Master’s in Writing, Editing and Publishing from RMIT in 2019 and has run his own creative writing business ever since.
