INFO TF1/LCI : le fondateur et PDG de la messagerie Telegram interpellé en France | TF1 INFO
www.tf1info.fr
[VIDÉO] Selon nos informations, le fondateur et PDG de la messagerie sécurisée Telegram a été interpellé ce samedi soir à l'aéroport du Bourget. Pavel Durov, franco-russe de 39 ans, était accompagné de son garde du corps et d'une femme. - INFO TF1/LCI : le fondateur et PDG de la messagerie Telegram interpellé en France (Police, justice et faits divers) - TF1 INFO

(Cross-posted from: https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/26559848/)

Some significant news for Telegram users!

See this article for some interesting backstory context on Pavel Durov and Telegram: https://www.spiegel.de/international/world/the-telegram-billionaire-and-his-dark-empire-a-f27cb79f-86ae-48de-bdbd-8df604d07cc8

Since the post article is in French, here’s an auto-translation:

Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of the encrypted messaging service Telegram, was arrested around 8 p.m. on Saturday evening as he got off his private jet on the tarmac of Le Bourget airport. The 39-year-old Franco-Russian was accompanied by his bodyguard and a woman.

The arrest was carried out by the gendarmes of the GTA (Air Transport Gendarmerie). Registered in the RPF (wanted persons file), Pavel Durov came straight from Azerbaijan. He had over his head a French search warrant issued by the OFMIN of the National Directorate of the French Judicial Police, issued on the basis of a preliminary investigation.

Why was he under threat of a search warrant?

The Justice considers that the lack of moderation, cooperation with the police and the tools offered by Telegram (disposable number, cryptocurrencies, etc.) makes it complicit in drug trafficking, paedophile offences and fraud.

This search warrant ran if, and only if, Pavel Durov was on national territory. “He made a mistake tonight. We don’t know why… Was this flight just a step? In any case, he’s locked up!” a source close to the investigation told TF1/LCI. Since he knew he was persona non grata in France, Pavel Durov used to travel to the Emirates, the countries of the former USSR, South America… He travelled very little in Europe and avoided countries where Telegram is under surveillance.

And now?

Investigators from the ONAF (National Anti-Fraud Office attached to the Customs Directorate) notified him and placed him in police custody. He is expected to be presented to an investigating judge this Saturday evening before a possible indictment on Sunday for a multitude of offences: terrorism, drugs, complicity, fraud, money laundering, concealment, paedophile content…

“Pavel Durov will end up in pre-trial detention, that’s for sure,” comments an investigator to TF1/LCI. “On his platform, he allowed an incalculable number of misdemeanours and crimes to be committed for which he does nothing to moderate or cooperate,” said a source close to the case.

His pre-trial detention at the end of his indictment is indeed in no doubt. Pavel Durov, a billionaire, has substantial means to flee and his guarantees of representation will hardly convince the judges.

A net with international resonance

For the investigators, this international sweep has various objectives. First, it makes it possible to kick the anthill, impress and deter the perpetrators of crimes and offences who exchange, until now, freely on Telegram. Secondly, they aim to put pressure on European countries to step up joint work to make secure messaging on terrorist cases bend.

Indeed, Telegram is a hive of criminal content. At the moment, the platform is in the news with the illegal broadcasting of Ligue 1 matches. But on this encrypted messaging service, many accounts are used by organized crime. Beyond terrorism, the most dangerous pedophiles communicate on Telegram to exchange content. “It has become for years THE number 1 platform for organized crime,” comments an investigator.

  •  troed   ( @troed@fedia.io ) 
    19•3 months ago

    Russia banned Signal, but not Telegram, to make sure their citizens couldn’t plan any subversive activities against the state.

    That’s all we needed to know for sure.

    •  nitrolife   ( @nitrolife@rekabu.ru ) 
      5•3 months ago

      On the other hand, Durov was arrested in Europe, but the developers of the signal somehow does not.

      Well, for some unknown reason, drug dealers still choose telegram. And they don’t just have an unfounded choice, but the profit depends on the messenger. Or say you that Durov was arrested for no reason?

      P.S. in Russia now testing system for ban all messengers don’t hosted in Russia. They next after youtube. Telegram too. Information from first hands. =)

      •  naeap   ( @naeap@sopuli.xyz ) 
        5•3 months ago

        Signal doesn’t provide such open and easily found chat rooms.
        It’s really much more a messenger (with group chats, but those you have to manually set up)

        So it’s not an “open” place like telegram and with that not as attractive for advertising illicit services or products.

        besides that, Signal is the technically much more secure variant. No discussion about it.

        •  nitrolife   ( @nitrolife@rekabu.ru ) 
          3•3 months ago

          So it’s not an “open” place like telegram and with that not as attractive for advertising illicit services or products.

          As telegram. If you think that some drug dealers create public chats with sell drugs, so… you are wrong. All work with darknet. In telegram all of them use only private one-by-one crypto chats.

          besides that, Signal is the technically much more secure variant. No discussion about it.

          If you want protect yourself for random network administrator on your network line, of course. If you want protect from anyone (government for example), of course not. Not necessarily in a bad way. Privatecrypto chats one-by-one are equally protected for the Russian opposition and for drug dealers. This is freedom of information. And that’s why Durov was arrested. and not because he can hack chats something but don’t do that. I think in really because that he can’t hack chats and don’t approve hack / insert backdoors for anyone.

          •  balsoft   ( @balsoft@lemmy.ml ) English
            1•2 months ago

            Bullshit.

            If you want protect yourself for random network administrator on your network line, of course.

            Telegram and Signal both use TLS. They are identically secure from transport-level attacks.

            If you want protect from anyone (government for example), of course not.

            Of course yes. If you want a more private group chat, or an actually useful 1-on-1 encrypted chat that works across multiple devices, Signal is the only option (out of the two, there are way better alternatives like XMPP and Matrix). For 1 device-on-1 device E2E chats, Signal and Telegram are about the same level of security, except Telegram’s protocol sees less scrutiny from the crypto community.

            As telegram. If you think that some drug dealers create public chats with sell drugs, so… you are wrong. All work with darknet. In telegram all of them use only private one-by-one crypto chats.

            LOL. I see drug ads on the street all the time. The one time I checked, it pointed to a publicly available Telegram bot.

      •  troed   ( @troed@fedia.io ) 
        2•3 months ago

        Not “somehow”. The authorities know Telegram can indeed backdoor their service, since they know it already is. They also know Signal cannot.

        Thus, since Telegram can but refuses, he gets arrested.

        •  nitrolife   ( @nitrolife@rekabu.ru ) 
          3•3 months ago

          an interesting assumption. how can private encrypted chats be hacked? On custom self compiled clients if you think that client have hole. I learned telegram protocol and don’t find any case. XD

            •  nitrolife   ( @nitrolife@rekabu.ru ) 
              2•3 months ago

              That’s why I started a domain in the ru zone. I can create domain anywhere else of course. If for you the nationality of the talker somehow affects the security of third-party software, then so be it. In the end, you can always not trust my words but familiarize yourself with the protocol.

              •  troed   ( @troed@fedia.io ) 
                1•3 months ago

                Yeah I am a cryptographer, reverse engineer and (whitehat) hacker. I’m also well versed in the russian influence operations having run rampant in the west for a bit more than a decade.

                The Telegram-supporters are out in force right now specifically to make sure people keep using Telegram, believing it to be secure. Russia has already made used of their backdoors against Ukraine in the war.

                Russia banning Signal now was a huge blunder, since that proves there’s nothing in Telegram they don’t have access to, having allowed it to keep operating.

                “Access to the Signal messaging app is blocked in connection with violation of the requirements of Russian legislation which must be complied with to prevent the use of messaging apps for terrorist and extremist aims”

                • Roskomnadzor

                Russian authorities began to block access to Telegram, a widely used messaging app, in 2018. The action interrupted many third-party services, but had little effect on the availability of Telegram in Russia.

                • Reuters
                •  nitrolife   ( @nitrolife@rekabu.ru ) 
                  1•3 months ago

                  No no no. Tell me how Durov, or someone else get access to my one-to-one crypto chat, if I compile mtproto self from github? You white hacker? Great. Try it and if you can you will be money rewarded. 500 dollars. OK?

                  P.S. If you will have problem with get money from Russia as we have problems to get money from Europe, I can send you money with crypto.

                  •  balsoft   ( @balsoft@lemmy.ml ) English
                    1•2 months ago

                    Tell me how Durov, or someone else get access to my one-to-one crypto chat, if I compile mtproto self from github?

                    As a separate statement: they can’t (probably).

                    In context of the discussion: they don’t need to, because secret chats are so inconvenient and fussy that they are seldom used. There is a lot of crime happening in public groups/channels, in “private” groups chats that can not be encrypted, or in 1-on-1’s that are not secret. Telegram has the ability to stop all of that with just some moderation, or turn messages over to the authorities, but they don’t. Which is precisely why Durov is in custody right now. If he actually made a messenger with good, convenient end-to-end encryption, he would be in the same situation with Signal authors, who have perfect deniability since they can’t read anything their users have sent up until this point.