Indonesia and India are considering banning Telegram due to allegations of spreading pornography and supporting online gambling. This news comes amid existing Telegram bans in other countries.
Accusations Against Telegram
Indonesia is considering banning Telegram due to allegations of spreading pornographic content and supporting online gambling. According to Demandsage, Indonesia ranks as the third-largest country in terms of Telegram usage.
Telegram's Response and Indonesian Government
Budi Arie Setiadi, Indonesia’s Minister of Communication and Informatics, said that Telegram promised to improve content moderation following the government’s request. However, the app did not implement the promised improvements and failed to respond adequately. The minister stated: 'I would prefer to shut down Bigo Live and Telegram immediately, but a team needs to conduct further studies first.'
Investigation in India
Following the arrest of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov in France over lack of content moderation, the Government of India is considering similar measures. The investigation is being conducted by the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre under the Ministry of Home Affairs. Digital rights activists are pushing back, citing concerns of censorship and restriction of free speech.
If these countries decide to ban Telegram, it could significantly impact its user base, especially in India, where there are approximately 104 million users.
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