Recently, the French Senate nearly approved an amendment that would require messaging apps to create a "backdoor" for law enforcement to access end-to-end encrypted messages. This controversial initiative was rejected by the National Assembly, marking a victory for those advocating for digital privacy in France. However, just three days ago, the Paris police prefect renewed calls for this initiative, as reported by Telegram founder Pavel Durov.

Durov expressed his satisfaction regarding the rejection of the "law that could have made France the first country to strip its citizens of privacy rights". He warned that any "backdoors" for law enforcement could be exploited by other parties, such as foreign agents or hackers, jeopardizing the privacy of all law-abiding citizens.

Supporters of the bill argued it would help combat drug trafficking, yet Durov doubts its effectiveness. "Even if major encrypted platforms were weakened, criminals would simply switch to dozens of lesser-known apps and secure their communications using VPNs", he explained.

According to Durov, Telegram, which has over 700 million users worldwide, has maintained a strict policy against "backdoors" for 12 years. "We would rather exit the market than betray encryption and violate fundamental human rights", emphasized Durov, comparing his approach to competitors who "trade privacy for market share".

Under EU Digital Services Law, he stated, Telegram complies with lawful court orders, disclosing only IP addresses and phone numbers of suspects – but never the content of their messages. "We have never transmitted a single byte of private messages", Durov asserted.

Despite the recent defeat of lawmakers in France, Durov warned that the fight for encryption is far from over. In March, the European Commission proposed a similar initiative to introduce "backdoors" in messaging apps across the European Union.

Although Durov positions Telegram as a messenger with end-to-end encryption, he has faced criticism for overstating its security. In particular, in 2021, Signal messenger founder Moxie Marlinspike stated that even Facebook Messenger offers greater privacy protection than Telegram, as end-to-end encryption (E2EE) is only activated in "secret chats" and is not enabled by default for all conversations.