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Story: Australia Hits Telegram With $35.8 Million Fine Threat Over Extremist Video Failures

By James Thorp

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Christchurch and Buffalo Footage Still Circulating. That's probably the most damaging detail in the whole filing.

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Pavel Durov Faces Charges in Russia and France. Australia is just one front. Telegram and its CEO Pavel Durov are dealing with serious legal…

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Australia isn't waiting anymore. The country's eSafety Commissioner has taken Telegram to Federal Court, filing civil penalty proceedings that accuse the platform of repeatedly…

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The core of the case is pretty straightforward. Telegram users filed complaints about pro-terrorism content circulating on the platform.

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Telegram hasn't said a word publicly about the Australian case.

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That's probably the most damaging detail in the whole filing. Both the Christchurch and Buffalo shootings produced footage that went viral in the immediate aftermath and has…

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The Online Safety Act gives the eSafety Commissioner real teeth. Platforms operating in Australia have clear obligations to act on reports of harmful content, and the law sets…

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And the silence from Telegram's side is striking. No press release, no statement to Australian media, nothing.

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Australia is just one front. Telegram and its CEO Pavel Durov are dealing with serious legal problems in at least two other jurisdictions right now.

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Related: Australia Fines Telegram AUD 54.6 Million Over Terrorism Content Failures

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In Russia, authorities charged Durov with facilitating terrorist activities. The accusation is that Telegram refused to remove channels and bots that were being used to…

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France is a separate situation but arguably the most dramatic one. Durov was arrested at Le Bourget Airport in August 2024.

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Three countries. Three separate legal tracks. That's a lot of legal exposure for a company that still hasn't issued a comprehensive public response to any of it.

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Durov has talked broadly about protecting free speech and resisting governmental pressure on private communications. It's a position that plays well with a certain audience.

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