Why Criminals Use Telegram

WSJ Tech News Briefing

The Wall Street Journal

Tech News, News

4.3 • 1.7K Ratings

🗓️ 13 September 2024

⏱️ 10 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The arrest of Telegram’s CEO Pavel Durov is bringing fresh attention to criminal activity on the app. According to law-enforcement officials and cybercrime researchers, Telegram has become the premier internet platform to buy everything from hacked data and weapons to illicit drugs and child sexual abuse material. WSJ reporter Angus Berwick joins host Zoe Thomas to discuss how Telegram became the successor to the darknet and what it's like to find your personal data for sale on the app. Sign up for the WSJ's free Technology newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	What is dedication? People ask how your children learn how to ride a bike and you didn't.
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0:17.0	Welcome to Tech News Briefing.
0:21.0	It's Friday, September 13th.
0:23.3	I'm Zoe Thomas for the Wall Street Journal.
0:26.2	Hacked data, weapons, illicit drugs.
0:29.8	Law enforcement officials and cybercrime researchers say criminals are using an app called
0:35.0	Telegram to sell their wares.
0:37.6	Now with CEO, Pavel Durov, has been detained in France and charged with crimes including complicity in
0:44.2	distributing illegal material and refusing to cooperate with
0:47.7	investigations into illegal activity on telegram. So how did telegram get to this point? Our reporter Angus
0:55.6	Berrick joins us to explain.
1:01.6	Telegram is part social network, part messaging app, and it's very popular.
1:07.0	It says it has almost 1 billion users globally.
1:11.0	Some of those users are criminals, according to police and researchers.
1:15.0	In a post on telegram last week, Pavel Durov said the platform wasn't perfect,
1:20.0	but neither was it a quote, sort of anarchic paradise. He said the telegram was always open to dialogue with regulators
1:28.4	Meanwhile the company's chief operating officer said exploding user numbers had caused quote growing pains and content
1:35.3	moderation which it was addressing.
1:38.2	Our reporter Angus Barric has been reporting on the situation telegram finds itself in now.
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