Telegram faces ban in Turkey due to illegal content concerns

The Turkish government has threatened to ban social media and messaging app Telegram, according to local media reports.

Takvim, a widely cited Turkish daily newspaper, reports that Turkish authorities are concerned about criminal activity on the platform.

Turkey is particularly worried about the use of Telegram for drug dealing, facilitating prostitution, and promoting illegal gambling website and offers. Users often pay for these services with cash or digital methods like IBAN and cryptocurrency.

Criminal proceeds from these activities typically need to be laundered. While Takvim hasn’t explicitly stated this as a concern, it’s likely that law enforcement is worried about where the money from these criminal exploits ends up.

Turkey’s Information and Communication Technologies Authority (ICTA) appears to be the agency leading the effort to clamp down on Telegram. ICTA has reportedly sent messages to Telegram’s London headquarters, but according to BTS, the platform hasn’t responded.

If Turkey blocks Telegram, it will mark the country’s second major social media crackdown this year. Earlier this month, the government blocked Instagram, accusing the platform of censoring posts about the Israel-Palestine conflict.

The potential action against Telegram is less political and more focused on concerns about criminal activity. Turkey isn’t the first government to express these worries about the platform.

Telegram’s use by various militant groups and pro-democracy organizations has raised concerns among many governments. These worries have intensified due to allegations of the platform being used for illegal activities, like the ones mentioned earlier.

Some payments stakeholders are also concerned about social media’s role in facilitating fraud. In the UK, for instance, banks have pointed to platforms like Facebook as tools for fraud and scams.

Although Telegram hasn’t been specifically targeted in these cases, it has been mentioned. Logan Porter, Director of Solution Engineering at SEON, an AI-based fraud prevention business, noted in a discussion at Money20/20 how fraudsters sell their tools on Telegram channels.

“There are places on the dark web or Telegram channels where fraudsters sell the tools and courses on how to commit fraud. It’s very sophisticated,” he said.

However, Telegram cannot be solely blamed. The app has been transparent about its efforts to clamp down on illegal activity, shutting down channels and pages used to distribute illegal content and products.

Moreover, many criminals avoid Telegram and use other options, sometimes even homemade ones. Just last week, the UK’s National Crime Agency busted ‘Russian Coms,’ a global fraud facilitation service that provided subscribers with tools to carry out their crimes.