Apple briefly yanked Telegram from the App Store over CSAM violations
Telegram came back to the App Store after it took down the illegal content and banned the user who posted it.
Telegram came back to the App Store after it took down the illegal content and banned the user who posted it.
by Aug 4, 2026, 12:57 PM UTC
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Emma Roth is a news writer who covers the streaming wars, consumer tech, crypto, social media, and much more. Previously, she was a writer and editor at MUO.
Telegram is back on the App Store after Apple briefly removed it on Monday night over concerns about child sexual abuse material (CSAM). In a statement to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple says a review found that Telegram “violates our strict guidelines prohibiting child sexual abuse material,” adding that it restored the app “after the developer promptly removed the content and banned the user who posted it.”
Telegram responded to Apple’s statement in a post on X, saying: “I’m sure this stance will be applied equally to all other apps in the store, in the future, right?” Telegram also includes a link to its safety overview page, which says the messaging app “blocks tens of thousands of groups and channels daily and removes millions of pieces of content” that violate its policies.
Neither Apple nor Telegram immediately responded to The Verge’s request for comment.
In 2018, Apple similarly removed Telegram from the App Store due to the presence of CSAM. Telegram’s moderation policies have come under fire in recent years, with French authorities arresting its CEO Pavel Durov in 2024 and charging him with enabling illegal transactions and complicity in the distribution of CSAM. The messaging app disabled some “misused” features and changed its approach to private chats as a result.
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