Telegram serves as a platform for clandestine trading operations for criminal syndicates across Southeast Asia, as per UN's assertion.
Bangkok, Thailand (Reuters) — Powerful crime syndicates in Southeast Asia extensively utilize the messaging app Telegram, leading to a significant shift in how organized crime carries out large-scale illegal activities, as per a report released by the United Nations on Monday.
The report serves as the latest criticism levelled against the encrypted app, following France's move to charge its founder Pavel Durov under a new law without a global equivalent, for facilitating criminal activities on the platform.
Credit card details, passwords, and browser history are openly traded at a massive scale on the app, which hosts numerous unmoderated channels, according to the report published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Cybercrime tools such as deepfake software designed for deception and data-stealing malware are also widely available for sale on the platform, while unlicensed cryptocurrency exchanges offer money laundering services, as per the report.
A Chinese advertisement in the report claimed, "We move 3 million USDT stolen from overseas daily."
Strong evidence suggests that underground data markets are shifting towards Telegram, with vendors actively targeting transnational organized crime groups based in Southeast Asia, the report said.
Southeast Asia has become a significant hub for a multibillion-dollar industry that scams victims worldwide. Many of these syndicates are Chinese operations based in fortified compounds staffed by trafficked labor. The industry generates annual earnings between $27.4 billion to $36.5 billion, according to UNODC.
Russian-born Durov was arrested in Paris in August and charged with enabling criminal activities on the platform, including the distribution of child sexual images. This action has raised questions about the criminal liability of app providers and sparked discussions on where free speech ends and law enforcement begins.
Telegram, with nearly 1 billion users, has yet to respond to a request for comment.
After his arrest, Durov, now out on bail, promised to share users' IP addresses and phone numbers to comply with legal requests and remove features used for illegal activities.
Benedikt Hofmann, UNODC's deputy representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, described the app as a user-friendly environment for criminals.
"For consumers, this means their data is now at a higher risk of being exploited for scams or other criminal activities than ever before," he told Reuters.
The report indicates that the enormous profits earned by criminal groups in the region have forced them to innovate, integrating new business models and technologies such as malware, generative artificial intelligence, and deepfakes into their operations.
UNODC identified more than 10 deepfake software service providers specifically targeting criminal groups involved in cyber-enabled fraud in Southeast Asia.
Recently, South Korean police, estimated to be the most targeted country by deepfake pornography, launched an investigation into Telegram, examining its potential role in online sex crimes.
Reuters reported last month that a hacker used chatbots on Telegram to illegally obtain the data of top Indian insurer Star Health, leading to the insurer's lawsuit against the platform.
Using the chatbots, Reuters was able to download policy and claims documents containing personal information such as names, phone numbers, addresses, tax details, copies of ID cards, test results, and medical diagnoses.
The criminal activities on Telegram have extended beyond Southeast Asia, with a Chinese advertisement claiming to move 3 million USDT stolen from overseas daily. The multibillion-dollar industry based in Southeast Asia, notably Chinese operations, has made the region a significant hub for transnational organized crime groups.
