Telegram, the contentious messaging platform, informed an Indian court that it cannot investigate every chatbot on its platform for potential data leaks. This comes in light of allegations regarding a significant breach involving Star Health, India’s largest health insurer. Struggling with a decline in business and reputation, the insurer has faced repercussions following data leak reports in September. The leaked information included sensitive customer data such as medical claim details and biometric IDs disseminated through a hacker on Telegram chatbots. In response to Star Health's appeal for comprehensive monitoring, Telegram reiterated that such actions would violate Indian regulations, stating it would only remove flagged content.

Star Health's Request for Help
Severely impacted by the breach, Star Health approached the Madras High Court last month, seeking orders to compel Telegram to halt operations related to the leaked data. During a hearing on Friday, Star Health was asked to specify which chatbots were problematic so that Telegram could take prompt action to disable them. While Telegram declined to assume a direct policing role, it expressed willingness to cooperate with Star Health to remove specific instances of reported data misuse. This incident has caused the company's shares to drop by 11% since the breach came to light.

Telegram’s Challenges and Global Scrutiny
Telegram faces mounting challenges globally, especially after its founder, Pavel Durov, was formally investigated by French authorities for allegedly facilitating illegal activities on the platform. Both Telegram and Durov have denied these claims, expressing their commitment to addressing criticisms and improving platform oversight. Meanwhile, Telegram's legal counsel pointed out that Indian laws currently prohibit general content policing.

Investigation into Internal Allegations
In response to the breach, Star Health has launched an internal investigation into claims that its Chief Security Officer may have been involved in the data leak. So far, the officer has been cooperative, and no evidence of wrongdoing has been found. The hearing has been adjourned for two weeks, with both parties under close scrutiny as Star Health works to recover from the incident and rebuild customer trust.