Australian Regulator Sues Telegram Over Extremist Content

The Australian online safety watchdog has filed a lawsuit against the messaging app Telegram. The regulator claims the platform failed to remove extremist content, including videos of white supremacist mass shootings in Buffalo, New York, and Christchurch, New Zealand, as well as ISIS beheadings.

Telegram, based in the UAE, reportedly has 1 billion users worldwide. If found guilty in the Federal Court of Australia, it could face a fine of up to 54.6 million Australian dollars (38 million USD) for not detecting and removing terrorism-promoting material. Julie Inman Grant, the eSafety commissioner, stated this on Thursday.

The civil action tests Australia’s 2021 law that requires tech platforms to work towards keeping illegal and terrorism-promoting material off their networks.

Telegram Rejects Allegations

Telegram has denied these accusations. In a written statement, a spokesperson declared that the company would contest the claims in court. The Australian regulator is challenging the content shared in group chats of up to 200 people and in channels with unlimited reach.

“This case concerns content linked to some of the most notorious acts of extremist violence in recent history,” stated Inman Grant.

She added that this content remained accessible on the service long after Telegram was warned.

The cited crimes were ideologically driven massacres committed for online audiences. Years later, digital traces of these shootings still elude regulators who fear the power of videos and manifestos to radicalize others.

A U.S. white supremacist live-streamed part of a shooting in a Buffalo supermarket in 2022, killing 10 Black individuals. He cited the crimes of an Australian white supremacist who live-streamed an attack on two Christchurch mosques in 2019, killing 51 Muslim worshippers.

Telegram channels created after these and other hate-driven crimes attracted users who supported the killers, sharing videos and other massacre content. The Australian watchdog’s lawsuit, filed Wednesday in federal court, argues that the unlimited reach of Telegram channels means the platform must take responsibility for removing harmful material.

Telegram’s Anti-Terrorism Efforts

Telegram, in its statement, claimed that its “extensive anti-terrorism efforts” are well-documented, providing a link to data on blocked content and channels. According to these figures, the platform blocked over 150,000 “terrorism-related communities” this year.

Inman Grant indicated that eSafety began urging Telegram to uphold its policies in March 2024, but the platform left the agency “unanswered” for months. This changed after France arrested Telegram’s founder and CEO, Russian billionaire Pavel Durov, in August 2024 over allegations of illegal activities on the platform, including drug trafficking and distributing child abuse imagery. He was released after four days under a 5-million-euro (5.7 million USD) bail.

“Telegram became initially more compliant with us and other regulators following France’s action against the company,” Inman Grant noted. However, she added, “They have still maintained a permissive environment for terrorist content.”

The Australian lawsuit also addresses ISIS beheadings and other “horrific material used for propaganda and radicalization,” she said.

Inman Grant emphasized that when platforms are alerted to terrorist content, they must act.

Russia’s Federal Security Service accused Durov on Wednesday of aiding terrorist activities. The agency also stated it would add Durov’s name to international wanted lists.

Telegram’s statement to The Associated Press on Thursday reiterated its commitment to protecting user privacy and human rights, such as freedom of expression and assembly. Telegram highlighted its significant role in pro-democracy movements globally, including in Iran, Russia, Belarus, Myanmar, and Hong Kong.

Graham-McLay reported from Wellington, New Zealand.

This story was translated from English by an AP editor with assistance from a generative AI tool.