Telegram CEO Arrest Renews Conflict Between Free Speech and Tech Accountability

Over the weekend, Pavel Durov, the chief executive officer of the messaging platform Telegram, was arrested outside of Paris. Authorities allege that Durov, a Russian-born billionaire who founded the service in 2013, had failed to fight crime committed on the app by its users, including the spread of child sexual abuse material.

The arrest sparked serious concern among some of the social media industry’s most high-profile decision-makers who worried that French authorities have created a threat to free speech globally.