Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, who was arrested, had his iPhone hacked in a joint French-UAE operation in 2017.
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Pavel Durov, co-founder of the encrypted messaging app Telegram, was detained upon arrival at Le Bourget Airport on the outskirts of Paris on August 24, 2024. This was because Telegram was suspected of being a hotbed of child pornography content and organized crime, and of failing to cooperate with requests from French judicial authorities, but behind the scenes, it has been reported that France and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) had hacked CEO Durov's iPhone.
Exclusive | Telegram Founder Pavel Durov Was Wooed and Targeted by Governments - WSJ
https://www.wsj.com/world/who-is-pavel-durov-telegram-founder-9b43eb5a
UAE weighs in on Telegram CEO Pavel Durov's detention by France | Technology News | Al Jazeera
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/8/27/uae-weighs-in-on-telegram-ceo-pavel-durovs-detention-by-france
CEO Durov was arrested on August 24, 2024, as he disembarked from a private jet at Le Bourget Airport in the suburbs of Paris, France. The charges were 'complicity in criminal activities, such as drug trafficking, money laundering, and child pornography, conducted through the Telegram app.'
Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov reportedly arrested in France - GIGAZINE
It has been pointed out before that 'Telegram has become a hotbed of crime,' but the relationship between CEO Durov and France can be said to be good.
In 2018, French President Emmanuel Macron had a lunch meeting with Durov, during which Macron suggested that Durov move Telegram's headquarters to Paris, and the granting of French citizenship was also discussed.
In 2021, CEO Durov obtained French and UAE citizenship. That same year, the UAE invested more than $75 million in Telegram. The acquisition of French citizenship was through the 'foreign notables' procedure, and CEO Durov's citizenship application is said to have mentioned multiple meetings with President Macron.
By TechCrunch
After that, CEO Durov obtained French citizenship, which allowed him to travel freely within the EU using a French passport. In 2023, he went on a bicycle trip to the Normandy region in northwestern France.
However, The Wall Street Journal reports that the French government was trying to seize information about CEO Durov behind the scenes as it built a relationship with him.
Sources told The Wall Street Journal that French intelligence worked with the UAE to carry out a mission called Purple Music to hack Durov's iPhone in 2017. The mission was carried out out of concern that the Islamic extremist group ISIS was using Telegram to recruit operatives and plan terrorist attacks.
In other words, the French government was pursuing a dual approach to surveillance and cooperation with CEO Durov and Telegram.
Meanwhile, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which is alleged to have hacked CEO Durov in collaboration with France, issued a statement on August 27, 2024 saying that it was 'closely monitoring' the arrest of CEO Durov and 'has called on the French government to provide him with all consular services as an emergency measure.'
President Macron said in a statement that the arrest of CEO Durov was 'not a political decision.'
President Macron issues statement saying Telegram CEO Durov's arrest is 'not a political decision' - GIGAZINE
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