Credit Cards Loans Banking Mortgages Insurance Credit Monitoring Personal Finance Small Business Taxes Help for Low Credit Scores Investing SELECT All Credit Cards Find the Credit Card for You Best Credit Cards Best Rewards Credit Cards Best Travel Credit Cards Best 0% APR Credit Cards Best Balance Transfer Credit Cards Best Cash Back Credit Cards Best Credit Card Welcome Bonuses Best Credit Cards to Build Credit SELECT All Loans Find the Best Personal Loan for You Best Personal Loans Best Debt Consolidation Loans Best Loans to Refinance Credit Card Debt Best Loans with Fast Funding Best Small Personal Loans Best Large Personal Loans Best Personal Loans to Apply Online Best Student Loan Refinance SELECT All Banking Find the Savings Account for You Best High Yield Savings Accounts Best Big Bank Savings Accounts Best Big Bank Checking Accounts Best No Fee Checking Accounts No Overdraft Fee Checking Accounts Best Checking Account Bonuses Best Money Market Accounts Best CDs Best Credit Unions SELECT All Mortgages Best Mortgages Best Mortgages for Small Down Payment Best Mortgages for No Down Payment Best Mortgages with No Origination Fee Best Mortgages for Average Credit Score Adjustable Rate Mortgages Affording a Mortgage SELECT All Insurance Best Life Insurance Best Homeowners Insurance Best Renters Insurance Best Car Insurance Travel Insurance SELECT All Credit Monitoring Best Credit Monitoring Services Best Identity Theft Protection How to Boost Your Credit Score Credit Repair Services SELECT All Personal Finance Best Budgeting Apps Best Expense Tracker Apps Best Money Transfer Apps Best Resale Apps and Sites Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) Apps Best Debt Relief SELECT All Small Business Best Small Business Savings Accounts Best Small Business Checking Accounts Best Credit Cards for Small Business Best Small Business Loans Best Tax Software for Small Business SELECT All Taxes Filing For Free Best Tax Software Best Tax Software for Small Businesses Tax Refunds Tax Brackets Tax Tips Tax By State Tax Payment Plans SELECT All Help for Low Credit Scores Best Credit Cards for Bad Credit Best Personal Loans for Bad Credit Best Debt Consolidation Loans for Bad Credit Personal Loans if You Don’t Have Credit Best Credit Cards for Building Credit Personal Loans for 580 Credit Score or Lower Personal Loans for 670 Credit Score or Lower Best Mortgages for Bad Credit Best Hardship Loans How to Boost Your Credit Score SELECT All Investing Best IRA Accounts Best Roth IRA Accounts Best Investing Apps Best Free Stock Trading Platforms Best Robo-Advisors Index Funds Mutual Funds ETFs Bonds Following the recent arrest of its founder in France, Telegram is now facing potential legal troubles in South Korea.Gay porno The country’s chief police investigator has announced a preliminary investigation into the instant-messaging platform’s alleged role in abetting sex crimes, according to a report from the local Yonhap News Agency. This comes against the backdrop of South Korea’s efforts to tackle the spread of deepfake pornography that has been targeting young women, including teenagers, in the country. The probe also poses another major legal challenge to Telegram after its founder and chief executive, Pavel Durov, was arrested in France on Aug. 24 for alleged offenses related to the messaging app. Durov, the 39-year-old Russian-born billionaire, was arrested by French authorities following a preliminary investigation into Telegram launched on July 8. Similar to South Korea’s investigation, French authorities were probing the platform’s role in the distribution of pornographic images of minors, as well as facilitating organized crime, drug trafficking and fraud. Durov was reportedly accused of failing to mitigate such criminal activities on the platform. Telegram said in a statement posted on social media platform X that it abides by EU laws and that Durov had “nothing to hide.” According to Yonhap’s report on Monday, Woo Jong-soo, head of the National Office of Investigation, drew connections between their case and the one in France and said there were plans to collaborate with their French counterparts and other international institutions. The investigation could be complicated by the fact that Telegram does not readily provide investigation data, such as account information, to any state investigative bodies, including those in the U.S., Woo reportedly said. Telegram’s refusal to share information with investigators when required by law has also been noted in the French investigation. While Durov’s arrest has been seen as an unprecedented move, the platform has recently faced legal issues in other countries, such as Brazil and Germany, over concerns surrounding illegal and harmful content. While Telegram has argued that its content moderation practices are “within industry standards and constantly improving,” certain features of the platform have made it a particular target of government scrutiny. By only requiring users to provide a phone number to register and offering the ability to hold end-to-end encrypted conversations through a “secret chats” feature, the app offers a high degree of anonymity. These anonymous features have long attracted illicit actors such as scammers and extremist groups to the platform. Now, in South Korea, they are attracting distributors of deepfake porn. Deepfakes are videos, sounds, or images of a real person that have been digitally altered and manipulated. They have become increasingly prominent amid the emergence of generative AI technology. South Korean police are probing eight automated programs generating deepfake pornography for Telegram groups, along with chat rooms responsible for circulating such content, according to Yonhap’s report. The investigations come amid pressure on authorities to respond to a growing number of reports detailing how Telegram groups, some as large as 220,000 members, have been used to share sexually exploitative deepfake images of female students from local universities, high schools, and even middle schools. This is not the first time Telegram has been at the center of a sex crime scandal in South Korea. In 2020, South Korean authorities arrested a ringleader of an online network that used Telegram to blackmail and coerce women and children into sharing explicit images of themselves. No legal action was taken against Telegram at the time. In response to Durov’s arrest, Chris Beer, consumer and tech analyst at GWI, told CNBC’s “Street Signs Europe” that it was unclear how far authorities would be willing to go in regulating and cracking down on Telegram, though other messaging and social media apps could also come under scrutiny. Beer added that there remains a tension between some consumers’ desire to have their freedom of speech protected and also government oversight to shield them from harmful content. Got a confidential news tip? We want to hear from you. Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. © 2024 CNBC LLC. All Rights Reserved. A Division of NBCUniversal
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