Apple has restored Telegram to its App Store after briefly removing the messaging platform worldwide over the presence of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), the companies confirmed on Tuesday.
The app was removed and reinstated on the same day after Telegram deleted the offending content and banned the user responsible for posting it.
An Apple spokesperson said the company suspended Telegram after identifying material that violated its App Store guidelines prohibiting child sexual abuse content.
“The app was subsequently restored after the developer promptly removed the content and banned the user who posted it,” the spokesperson said.
The incident marks the second time Apple has temporarily removed Telegram from its App Store. In 2018, the platform was briefly suspended over what Telegram founder Pavel Durov described at the time as “inappropriate content” before stronger moderation safeguards were introduced.
Telegram, which has more than one billion monthly active users, reiterated that it maintains a zero-tolerance policy on child sexual abuse material.
The company said it has blocked nearly 338,000 groups and channels linked to such content so far this year.
Responding to Apple’s explanation, Telegram posted on X that it hoped the same standard would be applied consistently to all messaging platforms available on the App Store.
The incident also drew criticism from Epic Games Chief Executive Officer Tim Sweeney, who questioned whether removing an entire communications platform because of content posted by a single user set a workable precedent.
“Apple has stated they removed the app from availability to a billion users because a Telegram user posted something horrible and illegal,” Sweeney wrote on X.
“They did not elaborate on how, if that is the standard for app removal, any communications app could operate at scale, including iMessage.”
Apple declined further comment on the decision.
Telegram has faced increasing regulatory scrutiny over its handling of illegal content.
In April, Britain’s communications regulator, Ofcom, opened an investigation into allegations that child sexual abuse material had been shared on the platform. Telegram denied the allegations, saying it had “virtually eliminated” the public distribution of such material since 2018 through automated detection systems.
Earlier this year, Australia’s online safety regulator also fined Telegram for delaying responses to inquiries regarding measures to combat child sexual abuse material and violent extremist content on the platform.
