Australia's eSafety regulator sues Telegram over alleged failure to remove pro-terror content, seeks A$54.6 million penalty

Australia's online safety regulator has commenced civil penalty proceedings against Telegram in the Federal Court, alleging the messaging platform failed to detect and remove pro-terror material including videos of terrorist executions and mass shootings.

The eSafety Commissioner's action, filed this week after a year-long investigation, alleges Telegram breached systemic safety obligations under Australia's Online Safety Act by leaving publicly posted unlawful material accessible after being put on notice, according to the regulator's statement.

Specifically, eSafety alleges Telegram failed to remove flagged material, including videos of terrorist executions, after reports from Australian end-users, with some content remaining live for up to three weeks. The regulator also alleges the platform failed to detect known pro-terror material such as the live-streamed 2019 Christchurch mosque shooting and the May 2022 Buffalo mass shooting, with that content having been uploaded nearly three months before its removal.

Australia’s eSafety further alleges that Telegram failed to remove the relevant accounts, channels, and groups to minimize future breaches, failed to maintain terms of service prohibiting pro-terror material across all parts of the platform, and failed to inform complainants of the outcome of their reports.

A breach of Australia's codes and standards carries civil penalties of up to A$54.6 million.

"This case concerns content linked to some of the most notorious acts of known extremist violence in recent history," eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said. She said the material remained accessible long after Telegram had been put on notice.

Inman Grant tied the case to the domestic threat environment, pointing to the aftermath of the Bondi terror attack and ASIO's assessment that Australia's terrorism threat level remains "probable." She said ASIO Director General Mike Burgess has stated that online radicalization is playing an increasing role in the agency's investigations, with individuals often radicalized by strangers online.

Telegram reports more than a billion users worldwide and is visited by Australians an average of 1.5 million times a month, according to eSafety. The platform hosts groups for up to 200,000 users and channels for broadcasts with no maximum limit.

The Australian action arrives a day after Russia's Federal Security Service charged founder Pavel Durov with aiding terrorist activity and placed him on an international wanted list over Telegram's alleged failure to remove content used to coordinate attacks inside Russia.

Durov, who holds Emirati and French citizenship, was previously arrested by French authorities in 2024 on allegations that Telegram failed to adequately counter criminal activity, and he has denied wrongdoing.