Telegraph, Telegram's Blogging and Image Hosting Platform, to Limit New Image Uploads Amid Concerns Over Illicit Content

Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of Telegram, is currently in France, awaiting trial. While the specifics of the criminal charges Durov faces remain unclear, it's evident that he is in discussions with French authorities to address issues surrounding Telegram.

Landian.news reported yesterday that Telegram has amended its user agreement, removing the previous clause stating that the platform does not review content in group or private chats. Moving forward, users can report content in both group and private chats, triggering a review process.

Last night, Durov shared several updates on his personal channel, highlighting two main points:

Firstly, Durov mentioned that although 99.999% of users are not involved in criminal activities, the 0.001% that engage in illegal acts tarnish the platform's image, jeopardizing the interests of nearly a billion users. As a result, one of Telegram's goals this year is to transform its review process from being criticized to being praised.

Secondly, the blogging platform Telegraph, which was initially designed to allow users to easily publish long-form content and media, has seen its media upload feature misused, for example, for storing child pornography.

For now, Telegram has directly shut down the new media upload feature on Telegraph. Whether this feature will be reinstated remains uncertain, but it's possible that existing content will need to be reviewed before any reopening, which would then include a content review process.

Other changes include replacing the "People Nearby" feature with one that only shows nearby businesses that are legal and certified, essentially rendering the original feature obsolete. This shift indicates Telegram's commitment to legality and user safety.

The closure of Telegraph's image hosting service has likely impacted many users who have used it as an image host or even a cloud storage solution for years. Although cost-effective, relying on such platforms is risky due to potential policy changes. The future of existing images and how they will be managed remains to be seen, leaving users dependent on such hosting services to look elsewhere.