Telegram CEO claims complying with Brazil order impossible
Telegram’s CEO says the company will appeal a Brazilian judge’s decision to block access to the social media platform in Brazil for failing to hand over data on neo-Nazi activity
SAO PAULO (AP) — Telegram's CEO said Thursday that the social media company will appeal a Brazilian judge's decision to block access to its platform in Brazil for failing to hand over data on neo-Nazi activity. He claimed compliance was “technologically impossible.” In a statement posted to his Telegram account, Pavel Durov said that when local laws or unfeasible requirements counter his company's mission — “to preserve privacy and freedom of speech around the world” — it sometimes has to quit markets.
Telegram has been blocked in the past by governments, including Iran, China and Russia, while in the latter country. Kremlin partisans have employed it as a digital weapon in President Vladimir Putin's war of conquest in Ukraine.
Durov said the Brazilian federal judge who ordered the suspension Wednesday “requested data that is technologically impossible for us to obtain.” He claimed to be defending Brazilian users' "right to private communication” but did not elaborate.
Telegram users can post publicly to channels they create or join — or communicate privately. The company says “secret chats” between individual users can be encrypted.
