{"id":4958,"date":"2026-08-04T19:35:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T19:35:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/silvybrand.com\/?p=4958"},"modified":"2026-08-04T19:35:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T19:35:10","slug":"telegram-app-store-takedown-extortion-pavel-durov","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/silvybrand.com\/?p=4958","title":{"rendered":"Telegram CEO says an extortionist planted CSAM in a chat to get it pulled from the App Store"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1lkuyz88 _19wv7tc1\">Last night Apple briefly removed Telegram from the AppStore because a user had planted illegal porn in a public chat.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1lkuyz88 _19wv7tc1\">Telegram was restored within hours. But I want to explain what happened \u2014 to warn other app developers and help protect online communities from similar attacks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1lkuyz88 _19wv7tc1\">Because Telegram quickly removes illegal content from public groups using all kinds of moderation tools, the attacker had to resort to a technical trick. He inserted AI-modified illegal content by editing an old message in an active group chat. As a result the content was effectively hidden from the group\u2019s members, preventing them from seeing\/reporting it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1lkuyz88 _19wv7tc1\">The attacker was a takedown extortionist: someone who demands ransom from group owners in exchange for not targeting their communities. These extortionists use automated accounts to plant illegal content in public groups and then report it directly to Apple, attempting to trigger the removal of legitimate communities whose owners refused to pay them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1lkuyz88 _19wv7tc1\">From a practical standpoint, illegal pornographic content in Telegram\u2019s public groups is not a systemic problem. Our moderation is effective. The fact that attackers must resort to backdated, effectively invisible content and other technical tricks proves this.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1lkuyz88 _19wv7tc1\">&#x26a0;&#xfe0f; However, there are two important lessons here for app developers and online communities:<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1lkuyz88 _19wv7tc1\">\u2014 Extortionists have found a way to manipulate Apple into overreacting. Apple removed Telegram from the App Store before contacting us. This creates a potential systemic risk for every mobile app that hosts user-generated content. If an app used by more than a billion people can be removed from the App Store without prior warning, any app can be.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1lkuyz88 _19wv7tc1\">\u2014 The tactics used by takedown extortionists are evolving, putting communities across social platforms at risk. Telegram has extensive experience identifying the tricks used by coordinated reporting gangs and protecting legitimate communities (even when doing so risks our own app being temporarily removed from the App Store). Other platforms may not be equally prepared.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup _1lkuyz88 _19wv7tc1\">Stay vigilant! &#x261d;&#xfe0f;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/tech\/975300\/telegram-app-store-takedown-extortion-pavel-durov\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Last night Apple briefly removed Telegram from the AppStore because a user had planted illegal porn in a public chat. Telegram was restored within hours. But I want to explain what happened \u2014 to warn other app developers and help protect online communities from similar attacks. Because Telegram quickly removes illegal content from public groups [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4959,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[345,86,46,34],"class_list":["post-4958","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-gadgets","tag-apple","tag-apps","tag-news","tag-tech"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Telegram CEO says an extortionist planted CSAM in a chat to get it pulled from the App Store - Silvybrand Lifestyle Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Telegram CEO Pavel Durov blames a \u201ctakedown extortionist\u201d for planting illegal material in a group chat, triggering the messaging app\u2019s removal from Apple\u2019s App Store.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/silvybrand.com\/?p=4958\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Telegram CEO says an extortionist planted CSAM in a chat to get it pulled from the App Store - 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