Telegram CEO Pavel Durov Arrested: A Blow to Free Speech
Over the weekend Pavel Durov the CEO of Telegram, a chat messaging app, was arrested. Durov’s detention at Bourget airport in France on August 24, 2024, marks a significant escalation in the ongoing battle between governments and tech platforms over content moderation and free speech.
His arrest follows just weeks after one million hacked files from the Israeli government were circulating on Telegram. The group behind the released documents, DDoSecrets, was banned on Telegram shortly after their release. These documents revealed that the Israeli government sought legal advice on how to avoid registering under the US Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), which requires the disclosure of foreign-backed lobbying campaigns.
The documents also show that Israeli officials proposed creating a new American nonprofit to continue their activities in the US while avoiding scrutiny under the law. Durov is notorious for his defense of user privacy and is known to denying government requests for access to user data. One has to wonder if these two events are connected.
Pavel’s arrest hits close to home for me. I haven’t traveled outside the United States in six years on advice of counsel for this reason. To date Gab has refused to work with a single foreign government when it comes to requests for user data or censorship of “hate speech.” For example I have large fines over my head in Germany for refusing to abide by their censorship and data requests. These requests are always tyrannical and ridiculous. A few months ago we received a data request for a user who called one of their politicians fat.
I’ve spent the last eight years of my life fighting for free speech.
Here is a list of our many battle scars that we were only able to overcome by the grace of God.
-A bogus witch hunt investigation from (the then) PA Attorney General Josh Shapiro
-Bomb threats on my parent’s home (FBI showed up, local elementary school was shut down.)
-Being smeared and lied about relentlessly by the international press. There are hundreds of articles.
-Our Wikipedia page was taken over by Communist Antifa admins who camp on it to this day.
-Banned from half a dozen banks
-Banned from both App Stores
-Banned from dozens of payment processors
-Placed on the MATCH list (payment processor blacklist)
-An extortion attempt by mentally ill trans hackers
-Banned from multiple cryptocurrency exchanges (Coinbase, Gemini, etc)
-My family and children doxxed/threatened endlessly
-Targeted by multi-national activist organizations and foreign operatives (ADL, SPLC, etc)
-Harassed by multiple foreign governments
-Bullied by Congress and the J6 Select Committee.
Gab is not only still standing, but it has 50 million unique visitors a month and has empowered millions of people around the world to speak freely and access information that is censored everywhere else for eight years.
Would I do it all over again? You bet.
My faith in God grew tremendously through all of these trials. My relationship with my wife and children grew stronger. I am the man I am today because of these trials and I wouldn’t change a thing. If we put even a dent in the Regime’s multi-trillion dollar propaganda machine it would be worth it, but we’ve done far more than that.
The shift in the Overton Window over the past few years was unthinkable a decade ago. We saved countless lives during the covid lockdowns and vax mandates. We broke the false narrative about the Trump shooter. So much good has come from Gab existing.
I am humbly grateful for the privilege, duty, and responsibility of being in this battle for free speech.
The arrest of such a prominent figure in the tech world sends a clear message that governments are willing to take drastic measures to control online discourse. I very well could be next. Durov’s arrest is not an isolated incident but part of a larger trend of increased scrutiny on tech platforms. The European Union, in particular, has been ramping up efforts to regulate online content through legislation like the Digital Services Act.
The defense of free speech online must be our paramount concern in the digital age. As we witness the increasing encroachment of government control and corporate censorship on our virtual spaces, it becomes clear that the very essence of discourse is at stake. Free speech is not just a luxury or a noble ideal; it is the bedrock upon which all other freedoms are built.
Without the ability to express ourselves freely online, we risk sliding into a world where ideas are stifled, dissent is silenced, and the powerful can shape narratives unchallenged. The internet has given voice to the voiceless and power to the powerless – we cannot allow this revolutionary tool for human expression to be muzzled by those who fear its potential.
To defend free speech online at all costs means standing firm in the face of pressure from both governments and corporations. It means supporting platforms and technologies that prioritize user privacy and resist censorship. It means educating ourselves and others about the importance of digital rights and the dangers of unchecked authority in cyberspace.
We must be willing to face uncomfortable truths, to hear opinions we disagree with, and to engage in robust debate rather than seeking to silence opposition. The cost of defending free speech may be high – it may involve legal battles, loss of profit, or even personal risk – but the cost of losing it is immeasurably higher. Our digital freedom is not just about what we can say online; it’s about preserving the open exchange of ideas that drives human progress and safeguards our liberty in all spheres of life.
Andrew Torba
CEO, Gab.com
Christ is King
