Which regulatory agencies enforce this type of clause?

{'agency': 'FTC', 'reason': 'The FTC has authority over deceptive practices including forfeiture of paid subscription value without adequate notice or appeal rights under FTC Act Section 5.', 'complaint_url': 'https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/'}, {'agency': 'State_AG', 'reason': 'State attorneys general can investigate unfair business practices related to account termination without refund under state UDAP statutes.', 'complaint_url': 'https://www.naag.org/find-my-ag/'}

What is the severity of this clause?

ConductAtlas classifies this Content Prohibitions and Account Termination clause as high severity. Severity reflects the magnitude of rights affected, the breadth of users impacted, and the degree of discretion the platform retains.

Content Prohibitions and Account Termination — Telegram

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What it is

Telegram prohibits spam, violence promotion, illegal pornography, and other broadly illegal activities, and can permanently ban you without refunding any Premium subscription fees.

Consumer impact (what this means for users)

A ToS violation — even a temporary ban — can result in permanent loss of any paid Premium subscription with no refund, creating significant financial risk for users who may inadvertently violate vaguely defined content rules.

Cross-platform context

See how other platforms handle Content Prohibitions and Account Termination and similar clauses.

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Why it matters (compliance & risk perspective)

Account termination for ToS violations results in permanent loss of Premium subscription value with no compensation — users face both loss of service and financial loss simultaneously.

View original clause language

By signing up for Telegram, you accept our Privacy Policy and agree not to: Use our service to send spam or scam users. Promote violence on publicly viewable Telegram channels, bots, etc. Post illegal pornographic content on publicly viewable Telegram channels, bots, etc. Engage in activities that are recognized as illegal in the majority of countries. Failure to comply with the Telegram Terms of Service may result in a temporary or a permanent ban from Telegram or some of its services. In such instances, you might lose the benefits of Telegram Premium and we will not compensate you for this loss.

Institutional analysis (Compliance & legal intelligence)

(1) REGULATORY FRAMEWORK: Content prohibition provisions engage the EU Digital Services Act (DSA) 2022/2065 Articles 14-17 on notice-and-action mechanisms, transparency, and appeal rights for content moderation decisions. The UK Online Safety Act 2023 imposes similar obligations. The DSA requires platforms with over 45 million EU users to provide specific procedural rights for content moderation, including the right to appeal. The prohibition on child sexual abuse material (CSAM) engages mandatory reporting obligations under NCMEC CyberTipline requirements (18 U.S.C. § 2258A) and EU CSAM Regulation proposals. (2)

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Applicable agencies

FTC

The FTC has authority over deceptive practices including forfeiture of paid subscription value without adequate notice or appeal rights under FTC Act Section 5.
File a complaint →
State AG

State attorneys general can investigate unfair business practices related to account termination without refund under state UDAP statutes.
File a complaint →

Provision details

Document information

Document

Telegram Terms of Service

Entity

Document last updated

April 29, 2026

Tracking information

First tracked

April 18, 2026

Last verified

April 18, 2026

Record ID

CA-P-002905

Document ID

CA-D-00173

Evidence Provenance

Source URL

https://telegram.org/tos

Wayback Machine

View archived versions →

SHA-256

d98859f1657cfb28ba990edd809f3245d45cf76486554b4eada7ff4459be5436

Verified

✓ Snapshot stored ✓ Change verified

How to Cite

ConductAtlas Policy Archive
Entity: Telegram | Document: Telegram Terms of Service | Record: CA-P-002905
Captured: 2026-04-18 10:40:57 UTC | SHA-256: d98859f1657cfb28…
URL: https://conductatlas.com/platform/telegram/telegram-terms-of-service/content-prohibitions-and-account-termination/
Accessed: May 2, 2026

Classification

Severity

High

Content Prohibitions and Account Termination