(Bloomberg) -- Messaging app Telegram’s recently announced updates to its terms of service haven’t led to many changes, according to Chief Executive Officer Pavel Durov.
“My previous post may have seemed to announce a major shift in how Telegram works,” Durov said on the platform Wednesday. “But in reality, little has changed.”
Durov, who was charged by French prosecutors in August in connection to crimes committed on the app, announced last week that Telegram had beefed up moderation and updated its terms of service to deter criminals from abusing it.
He downplayed the moves in his post Wednesday, saying Telegram’s policy since 2018 has been to disclose data from criminals to the authorities when it “received a properly formed legal request via relevant communication lines.”
Durov said an increase in valid legal requests from Europe in the third quarter came after European Union authorities began using the proper lines of communication.
French prosecutors have portrayed Russian-born Durov as the head of a company that refused to provide law enforcement with data to assist legal wiretaps on suspected criminals.
Durov, who has been ordered to remain in France during the investigation, denies the charges.
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