As much as I agree that Europe needs to break the power of Big Tech, Durov actually has a point.
Mandatory age checks will be the end of the open web.
“But the children…” is always the rhetorical device of choice to justify more surveillance. Meanwhile a pedo ring rules the world, with plaintext emails, without facing consequences.
If the EU is serious about confronting Big Tech, it should abolish anti-circumvention laws, as @pluralistic argues. Invest in open source, instead of wiring massive sums to Microsoft every month. And tax billionaires out of existence forchrissake.
Spain hits back at Pavel Durov over mass Telegram post on social media ban plan
Founder’s extraordinary intervention has laid bare rising tensions between European governments and tech firms
the Guardian (www.theguardian.com)