Australia’s online safety regulator has commenced civil penalty proceedings against Telegram in the Federal Court, alleging the messaging platform failed to comply with systemic safety obligations under the Online Safety Act 2021. The eSafety Commissioner filed the action after a year-long investigation, demanding penalties of up to A$54.6 million.
The regulator claims Telegram left reported videos of terrorist executions and other unlawful material publicly accessible for as long as three weeks after user reports were made between July and October 2025. It further alleges the platform failed to promptly remove or suspend accounts distributing the content, did not inform complainants about the outcomes of their reports, and maintained incomplete terms of service covering terrorism-linked material.
The case also highlights Telegram’s failure to detect known extremist content, including the live-streamed Christchurch mosque shooting and the Buffalo mass shooting, which remained uploaded for nearly three months before removal. eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant stated the material involved “some of the most notorious acts of known extremist violence in recent history,” tying the case to ASIO’s assessment that online radicalisation increasingly drives domestic threats.
Telegram, which reports over a billion monthly active users and hosts groups of up to 200,000 members and unlimited broadcast channels, rejected the accusations and said it blocked thousands of extremist communities in 2026. The proceedings arrive as Russian authorities separately charged founder Pavel Durov with aiding terrorist activity and placed him on an international wanted list.
