The founder of Telegram sends a mass message against Sánchez for the ban on minors on social media
The Spanish president responds, Pavel Durov, paraphrasing Don Quixote: "'Let the techno-oligarchs bark, Sancho, it's a sign that we're riding on'"
Following accusations of "tyrant" and "traitor" from X owner Elon Musk against the Spanish government for wanting limiting the age of access to social networks for children under 16.Now, it was the owner of Telegram, the Russian Pavel Durov, who sent a mass message through this network, directly attacking the Spanish president. "Pedro Sánchez's government is pushing through dangerous new regulations that threaten your internet freedoms," he stated. In his opinion, these changes "could turn Spain into a surveillance state under the pretext of protection." For his part, Sánchez himself responded to the attack with a post on the social network X, paraphrasing Don Quixote:Let the techno-oligarchs bark, Sancho, it's a sign that we're riding.In a message sent shortly before 6 p.m. from his verified profile via a broadcast list reaching millions of users with devices configured in Spain, Durov asserted that the measures announced by Sánchez—including the demand for criminal charges against executives for "serious crimes"—are "a red flag for freedom of expression and privacy." "They are not safeguards, they are steps toward total control," he stated. "Harmful actions" could land platform executives "in jail." Durov's message concludes with the following appeal: "Stay vigilant, Spain. Demand transparency and fight for your rights." "Lies and illegitimate attacks"
Sources within the Spanish government have denounced Durov's "unrestricted" use of his social media platform to send "various lies and illegitimate attacks" against the government en masse to the Spanish people, and stressed that these events demonstrate "the urgent need to regulate social media." "We Spaniards cannot live in a world where foreign techno-oligarchs can flood our phones with propaganda as much as they want simply because the government has announced measures to protect minors and enforce the law," they stated.
In this regard, the same sources argued that setting a minimum age for using social media will serve to "preserve the integrity" of minors, as is already done with limits on alcohol consumption or driving by minors. They justify this with two elements: mental health—20% of young people say they are constantly connected to devices—and the prevention of and response to abuse and deep fakes"Reports of digital sexual abuse of minors have increased by 13% in just two years," they noted.
The Executive also wants to criminalize the manipulation of algorithms that facilitate the deliberate amplification of illegal content and the alteration of the functioning of automated data processing systems, as well as create a tracking, quantification and traceability system that allows establishing a "hate and polarization footprint" and addressing legal issues with Groc, TikTok and Instagram.
From Moncloa Palace, they have accused Durov of filling his social network with lies to "erode trust" in institutions, and have pointed out that the founder of Telegram is being investigated for his possible responsibility for serious crimes, since his platform "has repeatedly failed" to comply with its control obligations.
"Durov has deliberately designed an architecture of minimal moderation that has turned Telegram into a recurring space for documented criminal activities, such as child sexual abuse networks and drug trafficking, with investigations underway in countries like France and South Korea," they said. "It is no coincidence that its founder was charged in France in 2024 for crimes related to the dissemination of this type of content," the Spanish government emphasized, adding that "a coordinated regulatory response" is needed.
The EU distances itself
Hours earlier, the European Union also warned that one of the points included in the Spanish government's proposal is "unfeasible." Specifically, the point referring to holding platform executives "criminally liable" when infringements are detected in the digital spaces they own. The European Commission, which declined to comment on the Spanish government's proposal as a whole, emphasized that member states cannot go beyond the framework established by the European Digital Services Act (DSA) and impose "additional measures or obligations" on large platforms and their executives. Currently, the power to set a minimum age for accessing the internet is the exclusive responsibility of member states, but monitoring compliance by platforms falls to the European Commission. "Taking additional measures or imposing additional obligations on platforms is clearly unfeasible," stated Thomas Regnier, spokesperson for Technological Sovereignty at the European Commission. And he added: "We don't just want to protect minors in Spain, we want to protect everyone in Europe." While the European Union has been increasing its control over the use of social media in recent years—Brussels has already opened several investigations and issued fines to tech giants such as Meta, X, Google, and TikTok, among others—it has not yet considered limiting access to social media for those under 18 or 16.
Nevertheless, Regnier argued that "there's no need to encroach on the DSA's territory," and that any initiatives implemented by states in this area must fall within the limits set by current regulations. "Is a CEO responsible for what I can put online? It's very difficult. That's why the DSA doesn't conduct criminal investigations," he asserted, before insisting that if an executive "algorithmically promotes a political party or reduces the visibility of others," they are not responsible.