Telegram founder Pavel Durov accuses French tax officials of selling crypto owners’ data

Durov said the alleged data sales led to 41 kidnappings this year, according to the brief statement provided.

16h ago

Fact Check

The claim is very likely true as a statement about what Pavel Durov said. The primary evidence is x post 2047757236508704922, a direct post from Pavel Durov, which explicitly states that France saw 41 kidnappings of crypto holders in 3.5 months of 2026 and blames French tax officials selling crypto owners' data to criminals, alongside tax database leaks. The TechFlowPost article corroborates and links back to that post. WatcherGuru also repeats the same claim. While these sources do not independently verify that French tax officials actually sold such data, they do strongly verify that Durov made the accusation described.

Summary

Telegram founder Pavel Durov accused French tax officials of selling data on crypto owners and said the alleged disclosure led to 41 kidnappings this year. The claim, as provided in the source, centers on the idea that personal data tied to cryptocurrency holders can create physical security risks, especially because digital asset investors are sometimes targeted for extortion or abduction. The statement does not include evidence, names of agencies, or further details about the alleged incidents.

Terms & Concepts

Crypto owners: Individuals or entities that hold cryptocurrency, either directly in private wallets or through custodial platforms.
Tax officials: Government personnel responsible for tax administration, compliance, and access to financial reporting data.
Custodial platform: A service that holds users’ digital assets on their behalf, rather than users controlling private keys themselves.