Telegram Briefly Removed From App Store

On Monday night, Apple removed the popular messaging app Telegram from its App Store due to content that violated the company's guidelines against child sexual abuse material (CSAM), according to Reuters. The incident was reported around 9:30 p.m. ET, with users unable to locate the app in the store or access its direct listing. Existing users, however, were unaffected and could continue using the app. Telegram remained accessible on the Mac App Store throughout the ordeal.

Apple confirmed the removal in a statement, stating that they had found content that violated their strict guidelines prohibiting CSAM. The app was promptly restored roughly 40 minutes later, around 10:10 p.m. ET, following the developer's removal of the offending content and the banning of the user who posted it. Telegram explained that the action stemmed from a single account, adding that they had removed over 337,900 groups and channels related to CSAM in 2026, in addition to 29,640 removals in 2025 following reports from organizations such as the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.

In response to the incident, Telegram Messenger (@telegram) posted on X, humorously claiming that reports of their demise were greatly exaggerated. Meanwhile, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, a vocal critic of Apple's App Store policies, argued on the platform that the takedown demonstrated the need for increased competition in app distribution.

Sweeney questioned Apple's consistency in applying its standards, highlighting the company's previous removal of Telegram and its Telegram X client in February 2018, which they restored after the app added extra safeguards.