Telegram Founder: Surge in Crypto Kidnappings in France May Be Due to Tax Data Leaks

Golden Finance reports that on April 25th, Telegram founder Pavel Durov stated that in the first three and a half months of 2026, France experienced 41 kidnapping incidents targeting cryptocurrency holders, and questioned whether the underlying cause was related to data leaks. He pointed out that some tax data and encrypted user information appear to have been leaked, and even exploited by malicious actors, leading to an increase in criminal activities against high-net-worth crypto users, and warned that “the more data, the more victims.”
At the same time, Durov criticized the French government’s plan to strengthen regulation of social media user identities and private communications, saying this move would further increase privacy risks. He emphasized that Telegram will not grant relevant agencies access to users’ private information, and even “does not rule out withdrawing from the French market.”