Telegram's t.me Domain Removed From Global DNS; Durov Learns of Outage in Real Time

Telegram’s core shortlink domain, t.me, was placed on “server hold” by the .me registry on July 13, removing it from the global domain name system (DNS) and rendering every t.me link worldwide non-functional. Founder Pavel Durov appeared to learn about the outage in real time.

Domain records show t.me was placed on server hold, a registry-level status that stops a domain from being published in DNS, meaning every lookup now returns NXDOMAIN. The domain had not expired, with registration records showing it paid through May 2035, ruling out a simple lapse. Industry publication Domain Name Wire noted that server hold is imposed by the registry, suggesting a suspension, though the cause remains unclear.

The .me extension is Montenegro’s country-code domain, operated by doMEn, a Montenegro-based venture with partners including Identity Digital and GoDaddy. The registry’s early partnership with Telegram made t.me the shortlink domain for the messenger, powering t.me/username and t.me/channel links shared billions of times.

Durov responded publicly on X, asking doMEn to investigate and stating that Telegram received no advance notice. The suspension occurs amid ongoing legal pressure on Durov, who was reportedly questioned by French investigators for a fourth time related to his August 2024 arrest. No link between that probe and the domain action has been established; possible explanations range from a legal order to a policy dispute or administrative error.

Telegram is widely used in the cryptocurrency ecosystem for project coordination, trading bots, and channel links. While the app itself continues functioning, invite links, channel URLs, and pinned posts now fail globally. Telegram’s crypto wallet is also expanding to include tokenized U.S. stocks and ETFs through Kraken and Backed, as part of a broader push to become a financial hub.

Observers await statements from doMEn, Identity Digital, or Telegram regarding the hold and restoration timeline.

Source: https://news.bitcoin.com/telegram-tme-domain-suspended-dns/