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Australia’s eSafety Commissioner has initiated civil penalty proceedings in the Federal Court against Telegram seeking a penalty of up to A$54.6 million for alleged breaches of the Online Safety Act. According to Commissioner Julie Inman-Grant the messaging service left material linked to some of the most notorious acts of extremist violence online long after receiving notice from authorities and users alike. Inman-Grant who oversaw Australia’s implementation of a world-first social media ban for those under 16 last year stated that this should concern all of us since no platform is above the law. The regulator has also alleged that such content serves to desensitise to normalise and to sometimes radicalise users while the platform has sometimes been used to plan attacks.
The eSafety Commissioner’s inquiry into Telegram’s handling of terrorist and violent extremist material began in March 2024. Inman-Grant reported five months of unresponsiveness from the company before it started to engage yet the service retained what she described as a permissive environment where the content remained very easy to find. A previous A$1 million fine imposed on Telegram in February 2025 for failing to respond promptly to queries about child abuse and extremist material underscores the regulator’s sustained focus on the platform’s compliance. The current action targets the company’s alleged failure to detect deter and disrupt pro-terror material even after reports from Australian end users.
Videos of the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings the 2022 Buffalo supermarket attack in New York and terrorist executions featured among the content that allegedly stayed accessible on the platform the eSafety Commissioner detailed. Inman-Grant pointed to the painful aftermath of the December attack on a Jewish festival in Bondi as a reminder that digital platforms must meet their obligations to protect the community. The Australian government stated it welcomes the eSafety Commissioner’s decision to pursue the maximum penalty available under the law for these alleged failings.
A Telegram spokesperson said the platform’s extensive anti-terrorism efforts were well documented. The company added that it rejects these allegations and will contest them in court. This response comes amid growing regulatory pressure on the encrypted messaging service from multiple countries.
A Counter Extremism Project assessment found that Telegram channels have allowed ISIS al-Qaeda Hamas the Taliban and other groups to broadcast messages directly to groups of followers. In a three-month period of 2022 the platform cooperated with a Riyadh-based center to remove 625337 al-Qaeda related items across 259 channels according to figures reported by Arab News. A 2025 report from the British Institute for Strategic Studies identified the service as a key vector for youth radicalisation in the United Kingdom citing its anonymity and limited moderation as enabling factors for extremist propaganda and recruitment.
The Australian proceedings follow Russia’s decision to charge Telegram founder Pavel Durov with facilitating terrorism only one day earlier based on claims the app was used for recruitment by Ukrainian secret services. Durov faced arrest and formal investigation in France during 2024 over his company’s alleged failure to moderate criminal activity on the platform though French authorities later allowed him to return home while inquiries continued. These international cases highlight the challenges regulators face in holding global technology providers accountable for content moderation across borders.
Inman-Grant noted that Australia does not license platforms such as Telegram but the regulator could apply to the Federal Court to cease the service if necessary. She added that such powers have never been used and decisions on further steps would depend on how this matter plays out in the courts. The case forms part of broader enforcement under the Online Safety Act which has already produced penalties and policy changes aimed at improving platform responses to harmful material.
