Forensics accuses Telegram: "Exchanged thousands of photos and videos of naked women"

Tens of thousands of photos and videos of women, some nudes, shared without their consent, were exchanged on groups and channels Telegram in Italy and Spain. This was revealed by a study byOng AI Forensics which points the finger at the platform’s responsibilities.
The NGO says it has identified nearly 25,000 active users on groups and channels dedicated to sharing photos and videos of naked women, sometimes for a fee. In total, more 80,000 files including photos, videos and audiosome AI-generated and “mostly sexually explicit,” were exchanged on the 16 Telegram channels analyzed over a six-week period.

Some contained images of teenage girls. The study authors identified other practices within these groups, such as doxxing (the sharing of a person’s personal information), harassment, incitement to rape, and distribution of child pornography. Many of the files in circulation came from other platforms, such as TikTok, Instagram e Snapchat. “Telegram is often used as a redistribution hub, where content extracted, leaked, or acquired from other platforms is aggregated, archived, and redistributed,” the authors note.

The NGO highlights the role of the platform in the persistence of these groups. “During the observation period, several groups were closed by Telegram and then reopened a few hours later after with the same names, which suggests that Telegram’s moderation mechanisms are inadequate,” the report said. At the time of writing the report, “all groups were active,” AI Forensics confirmed.

“Telegram combines robust privacy features, including end-to-end message encryption and pseudonymous accounts, with large-scale distribution capabilities,” the authors point out, arguing that this encourages abusive behavior. The messaging service also allows the creation of paid distribution channels.

They recommend adding Telegram to the list of “large platforms” as defined by the European Digital Services Regulation (DSA), which would strengthen oversight of these services.

Telegram’s reply

In response, Telegram told AFP that “its moderation systems are more effective at preventing the mass spread of harmful content than those of very large online platforms.”

The company also says it prohibits “the sharing of intimate content non-consensual, including pornographic deepfakes,” and states that “moderation of pornographic deepfakes is complex across all platforms.” In August 2024, Telegram founder Pavel Durov has been indicted by a French investigating judge on charges of failing to act against the spread of criminal content on the messaging service.