Hey guys, I’m having trouble viewing a chat room because it’s blocked due to pornographic content. I mainly use Telegram on my Android phone and desktop, but every time I try to access the chat, I get a message saying, “This message couldn’t be displayed on your device because it contains pornographic materials.” I’ve tried googling for solutions and attempted various fixes like using Nicegram, disabling sensitive content filtering in settings, using the web version of Telegram, and even trying different Telegram clients. None of them have worked.
Do any of you know how to actually disable the sensitive content filter?
Some content is restricted due to app store policies, especially Apple’s strict rules against displaying adult content to protect minors. Google’s policies are somewhat less stringent. You can bypass these restrictions by downloading Telegram directly from telegram.org for Android or using the desktop/web client.
Other content may be restricted based on your country, which is determined by your phone’s country code. Unfortunately, this restriction can’t be circumvented unless you use a different phone number from a different region. While this is typically not an issue in private chats, public channels and groups must comply with local laws, forcing Telegram to apply censorship accordingly.
Lastly, content that violates Telegram’s Terms of Service, such as illegal material like child exploitation, cannot be accessed at all.
(On a side note unrelated to the original post, but related to the last point, if you’re interested in seeing the impact of moderation efforts, check out @StopCA, which reports daily on closed channels and groups related to child abuse, often in the thousands.)