Telegram CEO Says Extortionist Manipulated Apple Into App Store Removal
Telegram was subject to a "takedown extortionist" who planted AI-modified child sexual abuse material (CSAM) to get Apple to remove the app from the App Store , Telegram CEO Pavel Durov said today . Apple removed Telegram from the App Store for about 40 minutes on Monday night after discovering CSAM, but reinstated the app after Telegram removed the content. The attacker was a takedown…
Telegram's CEO Pavel Durov revealed that an extortionist manipulated Apple into removing the app from the App Store. The attacker planted AI-modified child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in a public group chat and reported it to Apple, hoping to force the removal of Telegram from the App Store. Apple removed the app for about 40 minutes but reinstated it after Telegram removed the content.
Durov explained that the attacker used a technical trick to bypass moderation tools, editing an old message to add illegal content, and that the group members didn't see the message to report it. He warned that this incident could pose a systemic risk for every mobile app that hosts user-generated content. Apple did not comment on Durov's claim regarding the extortionist.
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