Brazil has lifted its ban on Telegram after the country’s Supreme Court blocked the messaging app on Friday for failing to comply with court orders, according to a report from The New York Times.
Telegram’s ban in Brazil has been lifted
The ban lasted just two days
The ban lasted just two days
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
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 made several changes to help keep misinformation at bay
The court walked back on its ban after Telegram made several changes to help keep misinformation at bay in the country, which includes removing classified information shared by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and deleting accounts belonging to Allan dos Santos, an activist and Bolsonaro supporter accused of spreading disinformation.
In addition, Telegram made promises to label posts that contain false information and promote those with factual information. It will also have its employees keep a watchful eye on Brazil’s 100 most popular channels, the NYT reports.
With over 1.1 million subscribers on the platform, Telegram has become a favored channel of communication for Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who’s currently under investigation for leaking police documents and has been accused of spreading false information in the past.
Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, an opponent of President Bolsonaro, ordered the ban on the app, which wound up lasting just two days. As Telegram CEO Pavel Durov explains, his company didn’t take action sooner because they were checking the wrong email inbox and failed to see the messages from Brazil’s Supreme Court.
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