The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) on Friday, February 27, announced that messaging platform Telegram will not be banned in the Philippines after government officials reached an agreement with the company to strengthen efforts against illegal online activities.

The DICT said the agreement was forged following discussions with Telegram leadership, including Ronak Singh and Abhimanyu Yadav, in coordination with the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC).

Under the agreement, Telegram committed to establishing a 24/7 helpdesk response mechanism to ensure immediate action on reports involving illegal content. The platform will also provide regular monthly reports to the DICT and CICC detailing takedowns and other enforcement metrics.

The agency emphasized that Telegram agreed to adopt a zero-tolerance policy against Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children (OSAEC), illegal gambling, and other abusive or criminal activities on its platform.

The move comes in response to the directive of Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to intensify efforts to clean up the country’s digital space and protect Filipinos from online harm.

The DICT encouraged the public to immediately report suspicious or illegal online activities through its official email at 1326@dict.gov.ph.

Earlier, DICT Secretary Henry Aguda said in a February 24 interview with DZRH’s Dos Por Dos that the agency was studying the possibility of banning Telegram in the country due to concerns that the platform was being used to facilitate pornography and illegal gambling operations.