Telegram boss Pavel Durov is not allowed to leave France due to criminal investigation

Telegram's CEO and founder, Pavel Durov, is being officially investigated in France as part of an investigation into organized crime related to the messaging app, Paris prosecutors said.

Mr Durov, 39, was not remanded in custody but placed under judicial supervision and must post bail of 5 million euros (4.2 million pounds; 5.6 million dollars).

The Russian-born billionaire, who also holds French nationality, must also appear at a French police station twice a week and is not allowed to leave French territory.

Mr Durov was First arrest upon arrival at Le Bourget airport north of Paris last Saturday on an arrest warrant for crimes related to the app.

In their statement on Wednesday, Paris prosecutors said an official investigation had been launched into Mr Durov. The alleged crimes include:

• Complicity in the management of an online platform to facilitate illegal transactions by an organized gang
• Refusal to communicate with authorities
• Complicity in the organised criminal distribution of sexual images of children

In France, the opening of a formal investigation does not automatically mean that someone is guilty, nor does it necessarily lead to a trial. However, it does indicate that the judges believe the case has sufficient substance to open an investigation.

So far, Mr Durov has not made any public comments on the recent developments.

His lawyer David-Olivier Kaminski said Telegram complies with European digital regulations in every respect and is moderated according to the same standards as other social networks.

It was “absurd” to claim that his client could be “involved in criminal activities that do not concern him either directly or indirectly,” he added.

The arrest of the owner of a social media platform because of the way that platform is used is unprecedented and has sparked a heated debate online about freedom of expression and accountability.

We've seen tech bosses hauled before lawmakers to question their practices and failings, but not by police at airports.

Elon Musk, the owner of X, has defended Mr Durov, arguing that moderation is a “propaganda word” for censorship and calling for Mr Durov's release.

Chris Pavlovski, the founder of a controversial video-sharing app called Rumble, said he fled Europe after Mr Durov was detained.

While most of the world's largest social networks cooperate with national and international bodies when it comes to serious crimes such as the distribution of child sexual abuse images, Telegram is accused of ignoring them.

The company, now headquartered in Dubai, insists that its moderation tools meet industry standards.

French President Emmanuel Macron said earlier this week that France was deeply committed to freedom of expression and that the decision to detain Mr Durov was “in no way … political”.

On Telegram, huge groups of up to 200,000 people can share and comment on information and content – ​​WhatsApp, on the other hand, limits the maximum group size to just over 1,000.

Although Telegram messages can be encrypted so that they can only be viewed by the sender and recipient, this is not enabled by default and must be turned on manually for private chats.

On Monday evening, Paris prosecutors said Mr Durov was being held in custody as part of a cybercrime investigation. In response, Telegram said Mr Durov had “nothing to hide”.

Russia said that without a “serious evidence base” the charges could be seen as an act of “intimidation” against a major technology company for political purposes.

Telegram is considered one of the most important social media platforms.

It was founded in 2013 and is particularly popular in Russia, Ukraine and other states of the former Soviet Union, as well as in Iran.

The BBC announced on Wednesday that Telegram – which has over 950 million registered users – has repeatedly refused to participate in international programs aims to detect and remove child abuse material online.

The BBC has asked Telegram for comment on its refusal to join child protection programs.

Mr Durov, who also founded the popular Russian social media company VKontakte, left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with government demands to shut down opposition communities on the platform.

He also holds passports from St. Kitts and Nevis and the United Arab Emirates.