Telegram is fined more than 5 million euros in Germany

The Bundesamt für Justiz (BfJ) has imposed two fines on chat service Telegram, which together amount to 5.125 million euros. This is because Telegram does not have a point of contact in Germany where people can report ‘harmful content’.

The BfJ reports that Telegram, which is based in Dubai, is violating German law by not having a representative in Germany. This must be able to speak to German users. It should also be possible to report harmful content, such as hate speech, via a Telegram hotline, so that it can be removed by the platform itself. As Telegram does not meet these requirements, it will be fined two by the federal agency: a fine of 4.25 million euros for the lack of a hotline and a fine of 875 thousand euros for the lack of a German representative.

German authorities have tried to sue Telegram in Dubai. This continued to fail, despite the support of the authorities in the United Arab Emirates. A German-based law firm has since stated that it represents Telegram, but that was not enough to prevent the fines from being handed out, the BfJ says. Telegram can still appeal the fines.