On Thursday, the 39-year-old billionaire broke his silence following his arrest in a lengthy message on Telegramwhere he stated that he found it “surprising” to be held responsible for content posted by other people.
He did, however, acknowledge that the increase in the number of Telegram users, which he now estimates at 950 million worldwide, created a situation that “allowed criminals to abuse our platform more easily.”
“Although 99.999% of Telegram users have nothing to do with crime, the 0.001% involved in illegal activities gives a bad image” of the application, he said Friday.
Among the new features highlighted by Durov is the arrival of the “Businesses Nearby” geolocation function, which will only display “legitimate and verified companies”, instead of “People Nearby”, which made it easier to get in touch with users located nearby.
After four days of provisional detention in France, Durov, who holds Russian, French and Emirati passports, is being investigated for violations related to the messaging app and is banned from leaving the country.
His judicial supervision also includes a bail of five million euros and the requirement to report to the police station twice a week.