A number of charges were brought against Telegram founder Pavel Durov, who was detained in France and then released on bail, but two of them caused a stir in the technology sector, writes RBC, citing the Politico publication “France uses secret cyber law to bring charges against the CEO Telegram”.
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At the heart of the allegations is a 2004 law that requires any company offering cryptography services to notify the French cybersecurity agency ANSSI and store a “description of the technical characteristics of the cryptography tool” as well as the source code of the software.
This comes as a surprise to companies offering encrypted messaging apps, such as Apple’s iMessage, Signal or WhatsApp, Politico writes, noting that some Western governments are using such “vague laws” to try to control private communications online.
There hasn’t been a single case in 20 years where tech platforms have been charged under the law, according to lawyers and industry representatives interviewed by Politico. “This is economic suicide and will quickly and permanently change the perception of founders and investors,” Proton CEO Andy Yen told X.
Also contributing to nervousness in the industry is the fact that a number of speakers who usually speak out in support of cryptographic tools this time refrained from commenting on the charges against Durov.
As Matthew Hodgson, CEO of Element and co-founder of Matrix (both companies specializing in cryptography), noted, Telegram does not actually have end-to-end encryption, and this complicates the messenger’s position since it has access to data that could be transferred law enforcement agencies to combat abuse.
Meanwhile, Durov remains calm, expressing bewilderment at the detention. He said the messenger works with governments and non-profit organizations to eliminate illegal content while balancing security and privacy.