According to a publication by the Ministry of Home Affairs’ Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), Telegram is being misused for activities such as drug trafficking, cybercrime, extremism, terrorism, child exploitation, as well as scams and fraud.
The report indicated that the government is actively assessing the challenges that Telegram presents and raised concerns about the anonymity it offers to its users.
It pointed out that Telegram allows users to hide their phone numbers, complicating efforts to identify individuals accurately.
The document further emphasized the platform’s suspected involvement in facilitating extremist actions, noting that acts of violence by terrorist groups have been spread via Telegram to disrupt public order.
Additionally, it raised alarms over the dissemination of child sexual abuse material through various Telegram usernames, bots, and groups.
The report stated that cybercriminals are utilizing Telegram to share information regarding the buying and selling of mule bank accounts, which can be used for money laundering and cyber-enabled financial fraud.
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The report also mentioned instances where malicious apps masquerading as legitimate banking applications were distributed to victims via the platform to capture personal data.
Data from the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) revealed a significant increase in complaints and losses related to cyber fraud over the past four years.
Registered complaints surged from 75,688, with defrauded amounts totaling ₹1,359 crore in 2023, to 2,48,324 complaints involving ₹1,940 crore in 2024.
In 2025, the number of complaints rose to 2,75,840 with losses amounting to ₹3,086 crore. By May 2026, the portal recorded 88,713 complaints involving ₹748 crore in defrauded amounts.
One specific case highlighted in the report indicated that Telegram was reportedly used to distribute pirated versions of the Hindi film Dhurandhar.
(Edited by : Amrita, Juviraj Anchil)
