TELEGRAM boss Pavel Durov faces life behind bars after Russia slapped the billionaire with a terrorism charge – before his app hit back with a savage middle-finger picture.
The 41-year-old tycoon has been placed on an international wanted list as Vladimir Putin’s regime turns the screws on his hugely popular messaging platform.
Pavel Durov faces life behind bars after Putin slapped him with a terrorism charge Credit: AP
His app hit back with a savage middle-finger picture Credit: East2West
Russian security services accuse Telegram of allowing channels and bots allegedly used by Ukrainian intelligence agencies, terrorists and extremist groups to plot “acts of sabotage and terrorism, mass murder, and cyberfraud” inside Russia.
Moscow claims the alleged failures have already resulted in “numerous human casualties”.
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But Telegram appeared to deliver a brutal two-fingered response after the warrant was issued, sharing a picture of Durov giving the middle finger.
The extraordinary clash comes as Russia wages a relentless crackdown on the encrypted app, which has become a vital communications tool on both sides of the war in Ukraine.
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Ukrainian security services have also been accused of using a popular dating chatbot on Telegram to lure Russians into “sabotage and terrorist activities”.
Russian authorities claim 46 users aged between 12 and 22 have been detained across the country since July 2025 in connection with the alleged activity.
Durov has long been a thorn in the Kremlin’s side after refusing to bend to demands for access to users’ data.
The Russian-born billionaire founded VKontakte – a Facebook-inspired social network – with his brother Nikolai in 2006.
The platform quickly became Russia’s biggest social network before Durov spectacularly fell out with authorities over demands to censor content and hand over information.
During the anti-Putin protests of 2011 and 2012, Russian authorities demanded personal data belonging to protest organisers and the closure of opposition groups on VK.
But Durov refused.
Then, in 2014, he was pressured again over his refusal to block a VK group supporting Ukraine’s Euromaidan protests and hand Ukrainian users’ data to the FSB.
He was forced out of VK and soon fled Russia, declaring the country “incompatible with internet business at the moment.”
The extraordinary clash comes as Russia wages a relentless crackdown on the encrypted app Credit: AFP
Russian authorities claim 46 users aged between 12 and 22 have been detained across the country Credit: AFP
Durov went on to build Telegram into a global messaging giant, with more than a billion monthly active users and a fierce reputation for privacy.
But the billionaire’s turbulent relationship with authorities followed him west.
He was arrested in Paris in 2024 after arriving from Azerbaijan with his girlfriend Yulia Vavilova, then 24, amid a French investigation into Telegram.
French authorities alleged the app’s lack of moderation, limited cooperation with law enforcement and features including disposable numbers and cryptocurrency made it an accomplice to drug trafficking, paedophilia and fraud.
Durov blasted the investigation as “completely absurd”.
He said: “Just because criminals use our messaging service among many others doesn’t make those who run it criminals.”
He added: “Telegram staff can’t see or read user messages.
“That’s why we’ve never revealed a single private message.”
Durov has also insisted that Telegram only reviews limited metadata, such as an IP address or phone number, when a court flags a user ID in a criminal case.
Now Russia has dramatically escalated the war against him by putting the billionaire on its wanted list and threatening him with life imprisonment if convicted.
He was arrested in Paris in 2024 after arriving from Azerbaijan with his girlfriend Yulia Vavilova
Durov has also insisted that Telegram only reviews limited metadata, such as an IP address or phone number Credit: AFP
The Kremlin has already restricted Telegram access and slapped the company with around $1.26billion in fines since January over allegedly banned content.
Putin’s regime has also launched a sweeping internet clampdown.
Authorities have blocked or restricted major platforms, while tightening the grip on online communications.
Facebook, Instagram and X have been banned, while Signal and Viber have been blocked and WhatsApp restricted.
The explosive Russian case comes after Durov revealed another astonishing threat hanging over his fortune.
The billionaire has drawn up a new will splitting his £17billion fortune equally between his alleged 106 children.
Durov says the children – whether conceived naturally or through sperm donation – will not get their hands on his fortune for 30 years.
He told Le Point magazine: “I want them to live like normal people, to build their lives on their own, to learn to trust themselves, to be able to create – not to be dependent on a bank account.”
