In Turkey and Russia, Discord, the popular communication platform, has been banned thanks to the action of both the country’s governments over concerns about the abuse of children and criminal activities. Usage of the platform for gaming communities and discussing crypto has also led to this in both countries, as the platform gets held to be responsible for facilitating harmful content.
According to the reports, authorities in Turkey blocked access to Discord after a court ruled that the platform was linked to cases of child sexual abuse and the spread of obscene content, as Reuters reports. It comes amid public outcry over reports that violent material, including posts connected to a recent double homicide, is circulating on the platform.
Turkey’s Minister of Justice Yılmaz Tunç reiterated the government’s position on online safety and stressed protecting children and society from harmful digital content. In a tweet on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Govt Tunç said social media platforms are used to commit illicit activities, and the government will take concrete action against such threats.
Bazı sosyal ağ sağlayıcılarında ve internet sayfalarında suç teşkil eden içeriklerle ilgili Cumhuriyet Başsavcılıkları tarafından adli soruşturmalar başlatılmıştır.
Bu içerikleri çıkarmayan ve bu konuda alınmış yargı kararlarını uygulamayan sosyal ağ sağlayıcıları ve internet…
— Yılmaz TUNÇ (@yilmaztunc) October 8, 2024
One hour before Turkey’s decision, Russia also banned Discord. The Russian government then fined the platform for not removing prohibited content, which the government has now taken a step further as part of a broader crackdown on non-compliant tech companies. Like Facebook and Instagram, which were under similar circumstances, Discord joins other major social media platforms banned in Russia.
Turkey bans Discord over child abuse, crypto crime
The developments come amid a growing wave of scrutiny against foreign tech companies conducting business in Russia. Long used for social interactions and cryptocurrency-related activities, Discord has been a target of regulatory crackdowns for a long time.
In addition to the child abuse allegations, Discord has come under fire for its failure to rein in crypto-related crime. A year ago, cybersecurity firm Kaspersky advised users to avoid scams orchestrated via private channels on the platform, especially on scammers’ breaching crypto exchanges. In another case, $ 880,000 of investors were defrauded in a scam that used a fake Discord channel for the Access Protocol crypto project.
Also, some high-profile cryptocurrency projects, like OpenSea, Renzo, and Polygon, have fallen victim to breaches on their Discord accounts, which hackers use to promote scams and malicious activities. The U.S. Department of Justice also brought charges against seven of the X users and two other defendants for participating in a $100 million pump-and-dump crypto scheme run through Discord.
The Turkey and Russia bans signal that governments across the world are cracking down on online platforms they deem as helping criminals trick vulnerable populations, such as children. Discord is in the regulators’ spotlight worldwide as online safety and censorship regulations escalate.
