Telegram founder Pavel Durov has denied allegations that his company granted backdoor access to French authorities, reaffirming Telegram's long-standing position on user privacy.
The statement was made in a public reply on X, following a year of legal turmoil sparked by his arrest in France over alleged complicity in cybercrime.
The denial came in response to a social media user who directly accused Telegram of secretly allowing government access to encrypted messages. Durov replied bluntly: “I'd rather die — no third party has access to private messages on Telegram.” This response marks the latest in a string of public rebuttals from the CEO, who continues to position Telegram as a staunch defender of user privacy, despite mounting legal pressure from European authorities.
Durov's comments come on the anniversary of his controversial arrest in August 2024 by French police, who detained him for four days upon arrival at Le Bourget Airport. The Paris Public Prosecutor's Office charged Durov with twelve serious offenses, including complicity in cybercrime, refusal to cooperate with interception mandates, and enabling the distribution of illicit materials via Telegram. The investigation, led by France's Centre for the Fight against Cybercrime and the Anti-Fraud National Office, is still ongoing a year later.
In the new X thread, Durov described the French government's actions as “legally and logically absurd,” emphasizing that Telegram had responded to every legally binding request from France once it was submitted through the proper channels. He accused French authorities of initially bypassing EU legal norms in their requests, stating that his arrest stemmed from a “mistake” on the part of police who failed to follow proper procedures.
Pushing for a backdoor in Telegram
Telegram, launched in 2013 by Russian-born entrepreneur Pavel Durov and his brother Nikolai, is a cloud-based messaging service known for its speed, large file-sharing capabilities, and privacy-focused features such as “Secret Chats.” However, only one-on-one Secret Chats are protected by end-to-end encryption; all other chats are encrypted server-side, making them accessible to Telegram itself.
With over 900 million active users globally, Telegram plays a prominent role in the digital communications landscape. However, its popularity has also made it a haven for cybercriminal activity. The platform has been repeatedly implicated in the facilitation of illicit markets, data leaks, and malware operations. European law enforcement agencies, particularly in France and Germany, have pressured Telegram to enhance cooperation, often clashing with Durov's refusal to undermine user privacy through surveillance mechanisms.
The controversy escalated earlier this year when the French Senate backed a bill mandating encryption backdoors for law enforcement access. Although the National Assembly blocked the legislation in March 2025, the debate was reignited in April when Paris Police Prefect Laurent Nuñez advocated for its revival. Durov responded at the time by threatening to pull Telegram out of the French market entirely if compelled to compromise encryption, stating that any backdoor “can be exploited by foreign agents or hackers,” putting all users at risk.
In contrast to platforms like Signal or Element, which use open-source and verifiable cryptographic protocols for full end-to-end encryption, Telegram's proprietary encryption model lacks independent auditing and transparency.
Despite these concerns, Durov continues to reject the idea that Telegram has ever disclosed user communications. According to him, Telegram has never shared private messages in its 12-year history and only provides phone numbers or IP addresses of suspects upon court order, in compliance with the EU Digital Services Act.
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