Overview
- Ofcom, which opened the investigations Tuesday, said it acted on evidence from the Canadian Centre for Child Protection alleging child-abuse images were shared on Telegram.
- Telegram denied the allegations, saying it has virtually eliminated public sharing of such material since 2018 through detection tools and cooperation with child-safety groups.
- The regulator also launched separate probes into Teen Chat and Chat Avenue to check whether the services protect UK children from grooming in open rooms and private messages.
- If Ofcom finds failures, the Online Safety Act allows fines up to £18 million or 10% of global revenue, and courts can be asked to order UK internet providers to block access.
- Child-protection groups welcomed the action, the UK government is pressing platforms for stronger safeguards including possible under‑16 social media limits, and Australia fined Telegram in February for slow responses on abuse and extremism questions.