Australia Telegram lawsuit seeks $38 million over pro-terror videos
Australia’s eSafety Commissioner says Telegram failed to detect extremist material and may ask a court to block the app locally.
By Dev Ramirez · Crypto Correspondent
· 3 min read
The Australia Telegram lawsuit puts one of the world’s biggest messaging apps under fresh legal pressure, with the country’s online safety regulator seeking penalties of up to A$54.6 million, or about $38 million. For investors watching tech regulation, the case shows how platform moderation failures can turn into real financial and access risks, even for private companies.
Australia’s eSafety Commissioner said it filed civil penalty proceedings against Telegram in the Federal Court on Thursday after a year-long investigation. The regulator alleges Telegram did not adequately identify known pro-terror material, including footage tied to the 2019 Christchurch mosque attack and the 2022 Buffalo supermarket attack.
The eSafety Commissioner also claims some of that material remained available for nearly three months and that Telegram’s terms of service did not ban pro-terror material across every part of the app.
Why is Australia suing Telegram?
Australia’s eSafety Commissioner says Telegram failed to meet obligations under a 2021 online safety law that requires platforms to keep pro-terror material off their services. In plain terms, the regulator is arguing that Telegram’s systems and rules did not do enough to find and remove extremist content.
Julie Inman Grant, Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, told BBC News that Telegram had maintained a permissive setting where extremist content was easy to locate. She said such material can desensitize users, normalize extremism and sometimes radicalize people. She also told the BBC that Telegram was sometimes used to plan attacks.
Inman Grant said Australia does not license online platforms, but the regulator could ask the Federal Court to order that the service be stopped in the country. She told the BBC those powers have not been used before and said the regulator would see how the case develops.
Telegram disputes the allegations. A company spokesperson told the BBC that Telegram’s anti-terrorism work is extensive and well documented, and said the company rejects the claims and will fight them in court.
Australia had already fined Telegram
The new case follows an earlier enforcement action from the same regulator. The eSafety Commissioner issued Telegram an infringement notice of nearly $1 million in February last year, citing a five-month delay in responding to questions about terrorist material and child sexual exploitation material.
Telegram described that penalty as unfair and disproportionate, according to The Guardian, and said it would appeal.
The Australian proceedings add to legal pressure on Telegram and its founder, Pavel Durov, in multiple countries. Russia’s Federal Security Service charged Durov with aiding terrorism and placed him on an international wanted list, according to Interfax reporting cited by Decrypt. The Russian agency alleged Telegram failed to remove channels used by Ukrainian intelligence and extremist groups. Durov could face up to life in prison if convicted in Russia.
Durov was also indicted in France in 2024 over allegations involving drug trafficking, organized fraud and child sexual abuse material on Telegram. He was released under judicial supervision. Durov denies wrongdoing and called the French case legally and logically absurd in a post on X.
The Australian case is now a test of how far the country’s online safety regime can go against a major communications platform. The most immediate issue is financial: a potential A$54.6 million penalty. The broader question is operational, because the regulator has openly raised the possibility of seeking a court order that would stop Telegram’s service in Australia.
This story draws on original reporting from Decrypt.
