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Telegram Founder Pavel Durov Hits Back Against Charges But Pledges Stricter Moderation

cyberexpress Sep 07, 2024 Cybersecurity News

Pavel Durov, a Russian-born billionaire and the founder of Telegram, has issued public statements for the first time since his detention in France last month, denying claims that the messaging app functions as an 'anarchic paradise' for cybercriminal activity. Durov was arrested amid an investigation into show more ...

crimes related to child sexual abuse images, drug trafficking, and fraudulent transactions associated with the app. However, he has also pledged to overhaul the platform's much-criticized moderation policies. Pavel Durov's Detention for Telegram Related Charges Durov, who holds French citizenship, was detained in late August amid an investigation into alleged crimes on Telegram. While he managed to avoid jail time, Durov was released on a €5 million bail and ordered to report to police twice a week while remaining in France. Durov has since then criticized the decision of the French authorities to detain him, believing that they should have approached the company with these complaints rather than charging him personally. He argues that using laws from the pre-smartphone era to charge a CEO with crimes committed by third parties on the platform is a misguided approach. Durov pointed out that Telegram has an official representative for the EU region to accept and reply to requests, and that the French authorities had access to a hot line he had helped set up. He believes that the established standard practice is to start a legal action against the service itself, rather than targeting the CEO. In a lengthy statement posted to his Telegram channel early Friday, Durov acknowledged that the platform has struggled to keep pace with its rapid growth, which has reached nearly 1 billion users, making it easier for criminals to exploit its services. While 99.999% of Telegram users have nothing to do with crime, the 0.001% involved in illicit activities create a bad image for the entire platform, putting the interests of our almost billion users at risk," Durov wrote. Telegram's Principles and Moderation Efforts Despite the criminal charges he faces, Durov defended Telegram's principles and its commitment to user privacy. He said the platform has consistently refused to comply with demands from authoritarian governments, such as when it refused to hand over encryption keys to enable surveillance in Russia, leading to a ban from the Russian government. "We are prepared to leave markets that aren't compatible with our principles, because we are not doing this for money," Durov wrote. "We are driven by the intention to bring good and defend the basic rights of people, particularly in places where these rights are violated," he added. Durov acknowledged that Telegram is not perfect and said the platform should improve its processes for handling law enforcement requests, mentioning that the platform removes millions of harmful posts and channels every day. "We've already started that process internally, and I will share more details on our progress with you very soon," he added. He has pledged to revamp the company's moderation policies, including removing features linked to illegal activity. The company has already taken steps to address these issues, including disabling new media uploads to its blogging tool Telegraph and removing its People Nearby feature. Despite the challenges, Durov expressed optimism that the recent events would ultimately strengthen Telegram and the social media industry as a whole. "I hope that the events of August will result in making Telegram — and the social networking industry as a whole — safer and stronger," he expressed.

North Carolina Musician Charged After Employing AI Tools And Bots to Boost Streams

cyberexpress Sep 07, 2024 Cybersecurity News

The United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York announced the unsealing of a three-count criminal indictment against Michael Smith, a North Carolina musician. The indictment charged Smith with wire fraud, wire fraud conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy for allegedly using artificial show more ...

intelligence (AI) tools and thousands of bots to fraudulently stream songs billions of times to obtain more than $10 million in undeserved royalty payments. Michael Smith Exploited AI-Generated Songs According to the unsealed indictment, 52-year-old Michael Smith used hundreds of thousands of AI-generated songs to manipulate streaming numbers across various music streaming platforms, such as Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify, and YouTube Music, to continuously stream the AI-generated songs. He partnered with the CEO of an unnamed AI music company, who supplied him with thousands of tracks per month in exchange for a cut of the streaming revenue. Smith then deployed thousands of automated bot accounts to continuously stream these AI-generated songs, avoiding detection and claiming over $10 million in royalty payments. The songs were given randomly generated names and artist identities to make them appear as if they were created by real artists, rather than AI. Smith has been charged with wire fraud conspiracy, wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracy, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The case is being prosecuted by the Office's Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit, and the FBI has praised the work of the investigators in uncovering this sophisticated scheme. Crackdown on Fraudulent Streaming Practices The case against Michael Smith is part of a broader effort by authorities to combat the growing problem of fraudulent streaming practices. Earlier this year, a man in Denmark was sentenced to 18 months in prison for a similar scheme. Music streaming platforms, such as Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube, have also taken steps to address the issue, including changes to their royalty policies and increased efforts to detect and prevent artificial stream inflation. The music industry has seen a growing backlash, with artists signing open letters calling for the end of the predatory use of AI in the industry. The charges against Michael Smith represent a significant step in the fight against the misuse of AI technology in the music industry. As the case unfolds, it will likely have far-reaching implications, serving as a warning to those who seek to exploit the system and a call to action for the industry to address the challenges posed by the rise of AI-generated music. The outcome of this case will be closely watched as the music industry and streaming platforms navigate the complex landscape of recent technological advancements.