Overview
- Interfax reported a 35 million rouble fine, about US$432,000, for allegedly failing to remove prohibited material.
- Russian authorities argue the service repeatedly hosted illegal or extremist content and threatened public safety.
- Telegram rejects the accusation and says officials are throttling its service to drive users to the government-backed MAX app.
- The penalty comes after weeks of tighter controls and technical slowdowns, with February reports of a criminal probe into founder Pavel Durov.
- The app remains widely used in Russia, and Telegram says it removes posts flagged by authorities when legally required.