Telegram, launched in 2013 by Pavel and Nikolai Durov, is an encrypted messaging app with over 950 million users, making it one of the world’s most popular messaging platforms.
It is used globally for everything from casual communication to official government messaging.
The app’s encryption means that both Telegram and law enforcement have limited visibility into user content, which has made it a key tool in countries with restricted free speech, such as Russia, Iran, and India, as well as in Ukraine for war-related updates.
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However, this privacy has also attracted criminal and extremist users, including drug traffickers, money launderers, and groups like ISIS and white supremacists.
Telegram supports large group chats of up to 200,000 users, unlike other encrypted platforms with smaller limits.
Despite its commitment to privacy, Telegram has faced scrutiny and legal challenges. In 2018, Russia attempted to ban the app over its refusal to provide decryption keys but lifted the ban in 2020.
The platform gained notoriety among Trump supporters and QAnon followers in 2021 after other social media sites cracked down on election misinformation.
Recently, Telegram has taken steps to address content related to violence, including removing channels linked to Hamas and anti-immigrant riots in the UK.
The company asserts that it is not responsible for how users exploit the platform.
