According to the just updated privacy policy, Telegram will now release a user’s phone number and IP address if it receives a request from authorities:

If Telegram receives a valid order from the relevant judicial authorities confirming that you are a suspect in a case involving criminal activities that violate Telegram’s Terms of Use, we will conduct a legal analysis of the request and may share your IP address and phone number with the relevant authorities.

In a post on Telegram, Durov says the company is making these changes to “prevent criminals from abusing the app’s search function.” Telegram’s search function allows users to search for public channels and bots, but Durov says it is being abused by people “to sell illegal goods.”

“We have made it clear that the IP addresses and phone numbers of those who violate our rules may be disclosed to the relevant authorities in response to valid legal requests,” Durov wrote in a post on his Telegram channel. “We will not allow bad actors to compromise the integrity of our platform for nearly a billion users.”

Discovered by 404 MediaTelegram’s law enforcement policy previously only applied to terror suspects and stated: “If Telegram receives a court order confirming that you are a terror suspect, we may share your IP address and phone number with the appropriate authorities.”

Telegram says the company will disclose whether it has shared user information with authorities in its quarterly transparency reports.

In addition to changing Telegram’s privacy policy, Durov said moderators are using AI to identify and remove “problematic content” from the platform’s search function. Earlier this month, Telegram changed its wording on moderating private chats, and it also disabled the “abused” People Nearby feature and paused media uploads to its anonymous blogging tool, Telegraph.

As Telegram attempts to repair its dubious reputation, it will likely make further changes to the way the platform handles illegal content and moderation.