A Moscow court has fined Telegram Messenger Inc. 7 million roubles (approximately $80,000) for allegedly failing to take down content promoting terrorist acts and anti-government protests, according to a report by Russian state news agency TASS.
Court documents cited by TASS claim that Telegram did not remove posts or channels containing calls for extremist activity, including content urging people to participate in protests aimed at overthrowing the Russian government and conducting terrorist attacks on railway infrastructure in support of Ukrainian forces.
Telegram, which was founded by Russian-born Pavel Durov and is now based in Dubai, has not publicly responded to the fine. The platform, with nearly 1 billion users, remains highly popular in Russia, Ukraine, and other former Soviet countries.
TASS also noted that Durov returned to Dubai in March 2025 after spending several months in France. His return followed his August 2024 arrest and investigation related to Telegram being allegedly used for crimes like fraud, money laundering, and the distribution of child abuse content.
