Terrorgram, a network of neo-Nazi channels, is spreading across Brazil

Terrorgram, a network of neo-Nazi channels hosted on Telegram, has begun to spread in Brazil. Nucleo has confirmed that a manifesto written by a young Turkish neo-Nazi, who stabbed five people and livestreamed the crime on social media, is also being shared by Brazilian groups.

The content republished by Terrorgram was directly provided by the 18-year-old criminal, identified as Arda K. He attacked five people with a knife in the university town of Eskisehir, Turkey, and was arrested shortly afterward.

The attack was livestreamed by K. for at least two minutes and went viral on X (formerly Twitter).

Glorifying neo-Nazis

On Telegram, videos of the attack have been turned into fancams, a term used for videos that celebrate someone or something popular on the internet, with captions featuring romantic or sexual declarations for the criminal.

These videos, analyzed by Nucleo, contain explicit crime scenes and audio, as well as neo-Nazi symbols. Unlike other social media platforms like Facebook or TikTok, Telegram’s do not contain clear clauses prohibiting the sharing or production of content that glorifies crimes or criminals.

In addition to the attack videos, the report identified that Brazilians are also sharing an audio file containing the English-translated version of the young Turk’s manifesto.

A message from Terrorgram, identified by Nucleo, states: “This channel, and all those associated with it, DO NOT encourage white terrorism or mass murders. We only share this content to document history.”

Terrorgram has been known for producing neo-Nazi propaganda for social networks since at least 2021. The collective has already created at least two written manifestos, a video glorifying white supremacists, and guides that instruct followers on how to commit crimes or manufacture weapons.

The report accessed these materials, which include references to the perpetrator of the Christchurch massacre in New Zealand, among others, encouraging others to carry out mass attacks to become heroes for the white race.

One of the few prohibitions in Telegram's terms of use is using the platform “to participate in activities recognized as illegal by most countries – such as terrorism and child abuse.” The content identified by Nucleo violates this policy.

The impact

These radical and extremist propagandas from Terrorgram have real-world effects. In 2022, a 16-year-old Brazilian teenager killed four people in a school attack in Aracruz, Espírito Santo. It was discovered that the teenager had been radicalized through Telegram channels connected to the collective.

In the same year, another young participant in Terrorgram channels committed a hate crime that killed two people in an LGBTQ+ bar in Bratislava, Slovakia.

In addition to these deadly crimes, Terrorgram is also linked to recent far-right mass riots in the United Kingdom and a series of attacks on power grids in the United States.

Legal issues in Brazil

The Aracruz case led to the temporary suspension of Telegram in Brazil. During the investigation, the Federal Court of Espírito Santo requested user data from a channel and a group the teenager was part of.

According to Brazilian authorities, the company only partially complied with the court order, leading the judiciary to request a temporary suspension of the application. Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of Telegram, said at the time that the request was “technologically impossible” to fulfill.

Days later, the Federal Regional Court of the 2nd Region partially lifted the injunction that blocked the app in Brazil, with the judge deeming the suspension disproportionate.

Arrest

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov was arrested in France on Saturday, August 24th. The country's judiciary claims that the messaging app does not moderate content or cooperate with authorities, making the Russian billionaire complicit in crimes such as drug trafficking, fraud, and offenses against minors.

As of the publication of this report, local media stated that Durov remained in custody on Monday and could be detained until Friday, totaling six days of detention.

Through its official channel on the platform, Telegram stated that it has always complied with European Union laws and that its moderation “is within industry standards and is constantly being improved.”

“Telegram CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and frequently travels to Europe. It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for the misuse of that platform.”

Reporting by Sofia Schurig

Editing by Alexandre Orrico

Translated with the help of ChatGPT, and revised by human editors