Pavel Durov’s Telegram messaging app faces new terror charges. Now in Australia.

Australian authorities are taking Telegram to court over an alleged failure to remove terror-related content, including video of the March 2019 shooting at a Christchurch, New Zealand mosque in which 51 people were murdered, several news outlets reported Thursday.

Julie Inman-Grant, Australia’s Safety Commissioner, said the messaging app founded by Pavel Durov faced a fine of up to $38 million for failing to comply with its obligations under the Online Safety Act, the BBC said.

“This case concerns content linked to some of the most notorious ​acts of known extremist violence in recent history, including material associated ​with the Christchurch and Buffalo terror attacks,” Inman-⁠Grant said in a statement, according to Reuters.

“We reject these allegations and will contest them in court,” a spokesperson for Telegram said in response to Reuters a ​request for comment. Telegram’s anti-terrorism efforts are well-documented, with thousands of ​extremist communities blocked by the platform in 2026 alone, the spokesperson told the news agency.

Telegram, home of many crypto-related discussion groups, hosting project communities, trading groups, bots and blockchain-based mini apps, did not immediately respond to a CoinDesk request for further comment.