Telegram Founder Warns Spain’s Age Verification Plan Threatens Online Freedom

[cryptoenthusiast]

Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov has criticized Spain’s proposed online age verification law, warning it could lead to censorship, loss of anonymity, and mass surveillance. The legislation would restrict access to social media platforms for users under 16 and require broader identity checks online.

Durov said the measures, promoted as child protection, risk turning Spain into a “surveillance state” by de-anonymizing users and expanding government control over digital spaces. He argued that such policies threaten fundamental internet freedoms and could be abused to suppress dissenting voices.

The warning comes as several European countries consider similar age verification frameworks, intensifying debates over privacy, free speech, and state oversight online.

[johnblockbuster]

durov calling it a surveillance state… not wrong, feels like a slippery slope for internet freedom