Telegram CEO says extortionist planted illegal content to trigger App Store removal

Pavel Durov, chief executive of Telegram, said an extortionist planted child sexual abuse material in a public chat, causing Apple to temporarily remove the messaging app from the App Store on Monday night. Durov claimed that Apple acted without first contacting Telegram, a move he characterized as a systemic risk for all apps that feature user-generated content. He warned that if an app used by over a billion people can be pulled without warning, any application hosting user content could face the same fate.

Durov explained that the extortionist used automated accounts to insert illegal content and then reported it directly to Apple, hoping to trigger the removal of legitimate groups whose owners refused to pay a ransom. In this particular case, the attacker altered an old message within an active group chat, adding AI-modified illegal content that was effectively hidden from other members, making it impossible for them to see or report it. Telegram was restored within hours.

The Telegram CEO also noted that illegal pornographic material in public groups is not a common problem on the platform because of effective moderation. He argued that the fact that attackers had to resort to such technical tricks demonstrates the strength of Telegram's moderation systems. He used the incident to caution other app developers about the evolving tactics of takedown extortionists, which could put communities on various social platforms at risk.

Durov's remarks come amid ongoing legal scrutiny. Russia previously issued an arrest warrant for him, alleging that Telegram facilitates terrorism. In 2024, he was arrested in France on charges that include enabling illegal transactions. Apple did not respond to a request for comment.