Apple vs. Telegram: Inside the App Store Removal Over CSAM and a Decade of Conflict

The Responses

• Telegram: The company acknowledged the removal publicly, attributing it to a single user's violation. CEO Pavel Durov accused Apple of inconsistent enforcement, arguing that similar CSAM issues exist on other platforms that are not removed . Telegram's X account posted: "Reports of my death are greatly exaggerated" .
• Industry Reaction: The incident renewed debate about Apple's App Store moderation practices and whether its CSAM enforcement is applied evenly across apps .

A Broader Pattern of Conflict

Yes, this is part of a long-running, rocky relationship between Apple and Telegram:

• February 2018: Apple first removed Telegram from the App Store over child abuse images. Phil Schiller personally communicated the reason, and the app was restored within hours after Telegram took action .
• May 2018: Telegram publicly accused Apple of blocking its app updates for nearly two months, allegedly because of a dispute related to Russian government demands for encryption backdoors .
• Ongoing Tension: Telegram's encryption and moderation philosophy have frequently clashed with Apple's App Store guidelines. Telegram has long resisted robust automated CSAM scanning in private chats, while Apple has made child safety a high-profile policy area, creating structural friction between the two companies .