The U.S. Department of Justice has received court authorization to conduct a remote inspection of Telegram’s servers as part of an investigation into child exploitation. The prosecutor’s motion stated that this measure was necessary due to the company’s refusal to cooperate with law enforcement and respond to official inquiries.
The judge granted permission to use a specialized remote access technique that allows a series of requests to be sent to Telegram servers. These requests force the system to return information about the target account, including messages and associated data.
The decision was reported by CourtWatch , citing court documents; however, direct links were not included in the story because the documents contain personally identifiable information.
According to the document, the downloaded information must be stored on the investigator’s device within the jurisdiction where the trial takes place.
It was also emphasized that no further attempts to access the account will be made without a separate court order. Therefore, this is a one-time remote access to the Telegram infrastructure for the purpose of downloading correspondence and other materials necessary for the case.
This case is a clear example of how US authorities use direct access to foreign servers to circumvent the company’s lack of cooperation.
Such actions are sparking debate about the scope of intelligence agencies’ authority, cross-border jurisdiction, and the implications for messaging app users who claim immunity from outside scrutiny.
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