Australia: Telegram filed case against eSafety Commissioner in Federal Court of Australia concerning validity of a reporting notice

On 15 April 2025, the Office of the eSafety Commissioner announced that Telegram had sought judicial review in the Federal Court, arguing that it was not a “provider” of the Telegram Messenger application under the Online Safety Act and therefore was not required to respond to the reporting notice. Telegram also argued that the notice had not been properly ‘given’. According to the Office of the eSafety Commissioner, the notice sought information on measures taken to address terrorist and violent extremist material and child sexual exploitation material on the platform. The Office also stated that in February 2025, Telegram FZ-LLC had been issued an infringement notice of almost USD 1 million for failing to respond to a transparency reporting notice for more than five months, which delayed publication of information about steps taken to address such material on the platform.