A Brazilian court has issued a temporary suspension order for encrypted messaging app, Telegram, until it shares information on extremist and neo-Nazi groups using the platform. The federal police requested the suspension order after Telegram failed to comply with a previous court decision to hand over data about two neo-Nazi groups on the app accused of inciting violence in schools.
The judge stated that telecommunications firms in the country should start to suspend access to the messaging service and downloading of the app. Local media reported that the federal police requested the contacts of administrators and members and the phone numbers of users from those groups.
Telegram has not complied with the court order and only “partially” complied by sending limited information. The messaging app is focused on speed and privacy, and it says its special secret chats use end-to-end encryption and are not stored on its servers.
However, last year, a Supreme Court Justice ordered the app’s suspension, arguing that Telegram had repeatedly refused to adhere to judicial orders to freeze accounts spreading fake news and failed to comply with Brazilian laws. In 2016, a similar order was issued against Meta’s WhatsApp in Brazil, but it was quickly overturned.
In November 2022, a teenage shooter murdered four and injured 13 people in the Esprito Santo municipality of Aracruz, and investigators believe the killer took part in a neo-Nazi Telegram channel, spreading videos of violent deaths and instructions on homemade explosives.
The judge argued that Telegram must provide information about extremist and neo-Nazi groups using its platform.
