Telegram CEO says he was ‘surprised’ by his arrest and interrogation
CNN
Telegram’s CEO Pavel Durov returned to the messaging platform Thursday, saying in a lengthy post that he was surprised to have been arrested and interviewed by French authorities for four days.
Telegram CEO Pavel Durov returned to the messaging platform Thursday, saying in a lengthy post that he was surprised to have been arrested and interviewed by French authorities less than two weeks ago in an investigation that has sparked debate about free speech and criminal activity online. Durov was arrested at a Paris airport amid an investigation into suspected offenses related to criminal activity on Telegram, according to French prosecutors. He was later released from police custody bail set at $5.56 million as the probe unfolds. Telegram, which Durov said had 950 million users, is used both as an everyday messaging tool and a way work around authoritative governments – but White supremacist groups and Isis also favor it. Prosecutors are also probing Durov over alleged ‘acts of violence’ against his child in Switzerland. In the Telegram post Thursday, his first since his arrest, Durov acknowledged that the app’s “abrupt increase” in users caused growing pains that made it easier for criminals to abuse the platform. “That’s why I made it my personal goal to ensure we significantly improve things in this regard. We’ve already started that process internally, and I will share more details on our progress with you very soon,” Durov said.
Union members at Boeing overwhelmingly rejected a proposed a four-year contract with the troubled aircraft manufacturer, authorizing the first strike at the company in 16 years, said the International Association of Machinist (IAM) union. About 33,000 workers are prepared to walk off the job, and the strike is set to begin early Friday morning.