Russia Charges Telegram Founder Pavel Durov With Aiding Terrorism

Pavel Durov, the founder and owner of messaging app Telegram, has been accused of aiding terrorism and has been placed on an international wanted list, Russia’s main internal security agency said on Wednesday.

Accusations against Durov from birth He started his career in Russia but it was later moved abroad because Russian authorities restricted Telegram, one of the most popular messaging apps in the country. This is part of a long-term effort that has intensified since Moscow’s launch to bring the internet under the Kremlin’s full control. Full-scale invasion of Ukraine In February 2022.

In a statement, the Federal Security Service, also known as the FSB, accused the Telegram administration of failing to remove “a large number of channels, chats and bots” that were “actively used by Ukrainian intelligence agencies, terrorists and extremist organizations to prepare and coordinate acts of sabotage and terrorism, mass murder and cyber fraud in Russia” and led to “large numbers of human casualties.”

The agency accused Ukrainian security services of using a popular dating chatbot on Telegram to lure and recruit Russians for “sabotage and terrorist activities” and said 46 users of the chatbot, aged 12 to 22, had been detained since July 2025 for attacking law enforcement officers, arson and other actions across Russia.

Durov announced earlier this year that Russian authorities had opened a criminal investigation against him, accusing them of making excuses to restrict access to Telegram as part of an attempt to “suppress privacy and freedom of expression.”

If convicted, the entrepreneur could face life imprisonment in Russia.

Telegram did not immediately respond to a request for comment. On the official website, it is stated that the company’s headquarters is in Dubai and that Durov, who has dual citizenship of the United Arab Emirates and France, also lives here.

Under President Vladimir Putin, Russian authorities have embarked on multifaceted efforts to rein in the internet. They adopted restrictive laws and banned websites and platforms that did not comply with them, and focused on improving technology to monitor and manage online traffic.

Many popular social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and X are banned in Russia; YouTube is restricted; Popular messaging apps such as Signal and Viber were blocked, and the most popular ones, WhatsApp and Telegram, were restricted.

Russia’s popular Facebook-like social media platform VK, which Durov founded long before launching the Telegram messaging application, was taken over by Kremlin-friendly companies. Russia tried to block Telegram between 2018-20 but failed.

While it is still possible to bypass some restrictions by using virtual private network services, many are routinely blocked.

At the same time, Russia is actively promoting its “national” messaging app known as MAX, which critics say could be used for surveillance. The platform is touted by developers and officials as a one-stop shop for messaging, online government services, making payments and more. The company clearly states that it will share user data with the authorities if requested, and also states that it does not use end-to-end encryption.

Durov encountered Criminal investigations elsewhere. in 2024 arrested in paris Following allegations that its platform was used for illegal activities, including drug trafficking and distribution of child sexual abuse images. Durov said he returned to Dubai in March 2025 after spending “a few months” in France.

This story has been corrected to show that the possible sentence is life in prison, not 15 years.