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A vulnerability in Telegram's Android and iOS clients allows attackers to reveal a user's real IP address with a single click on a specially crafted proxy link. Security researchers demonstrated that these links, which can be disguised as ordinary usernames or URLs, trigger Telegram to automatically connect directly to the specified proxy server before any user confirmation or proxy configuration, exposing the user's true IP address to the attacker.
This flaw bypasses all user-configured proxies, VPNs, or privacy settings, as the initial connectivity test is sent directly from the device's native network stack. The issue affects millions of privacy-conscious users, including activists and journalists, who rely on Telegram's proxy features to conceal their location. Telegram has responded by adding warnings to proxy links, but the underlying risk remains significant for users who may inadvertently click on disguised links.
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4 events from the most recent confirmed update back to the earliest known activity.
Telegram told BleepingComputer it does not consider the behavior unique compared with normal web or proxy behavior, but said it plans to add warnings when users click proxy links. The company did not provide a timeline for rolling out the warning.
The X account GangExposed RU amplified the disclosure of the Telegram proxy-link IP leak, helping spread awareness of the issue beyond the initial Telegram-channel report. The amplification concerned the same one-click deanonymization technique affecting Telegram mobile users.
A Russian-language Telegram channel, chekist42, initially highlighted that specially crafted Telegram proxy links could reveal a user's real IP address when opened in Telegram's mobile apps. The issue involved disguised t.me/proxy links that triggered an automatic proxy test connection to an attacker-controlled MTProto proxy.
On 2026-01-10, researcher 0x6rss publicly demonstrated and shared a proof of concept showing that Telegram Android and iOS clients could leak a user's real IP address via a crafted proxy link disguised as a username or harmless URL.
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A stored cross-site scripting flaw in Telegram Desktop allowed malicious bot inline-keyboard button text to be written unescaped into HTML chat exports. Attackers could forward a poisoned bot message into a target chat without joining it; if a recipient later exported that chat and opened the HTML file in a JavaScript-enabled browser, the embedded payload could execute, exfiltrating rendered messages and metadata, revealing the local export path, altering displayed conversations, or presenting phishing-style verification forms. The flaw affected Telegram Desktop versions 4.15.1 through 6.9.3 and was reported by ExPatch researchers Denis Rostilov and Aleksander Rostilov on June 3. Telegram added sanitization in version 6.9.4 beta and released the stable fix in version 7.0.1, but exports generated by vulnerable clients remain dangerous: organizations should regenerate affected archives or treat them as untrusted and open them with JavaScript disabled. Researchers reported no evidence of in-the-wild exploitation, and no CVE or official Telegram advisory had been issued.
Sep 16, 2026
Researchers reported that malicious Android applications, including VPN-themed apps and software built with the **LumiApps** SDK, secretly enrolled users’ devices into a proxy network and routed third-party traffic through them without informed consent. HUMAN’s Satori team said the operation, tracked as **PROXYLIB**, used a Golang-based native library, `libgojni.so`, to contact command-and-control servers, register infected phones, and maintain persistent proxy connections through Android services and boot receivers. The activity was linked to earlier infections found in **Oko VPN** and 28 related Google Play apps, as well as a later variant that could be embedded during app development or injected into APKs without source-code access. Investigators said the infrastructure and monetization appeared tied to **Asocks**, a residential proxy service, indicating the compromised devices were likely being sold as proxy exit nodes for cybercriminal use. Google removed the identified apps from Google Play, and **Google Play Protect** now detects or blocks known PROXYLIB-related applications, while researchers warned the operators are likely to keep shifting to third-party app stores and modified APK distribution.
Jun 29, 2026
Security researchers reported that residential proxy networks are increasingly being used to route malicious traffic through legitimate home internet connections, helping attackers evade IP reputation controls while making abuse appear to come from ordinary consumers and organizations. Infoblox said more than **65%** of its cloud customers queried domains tied to residential proxy services in 2026, with monthly DNS traffic rising from roughly **300–400 billion** queries in early 2025 to more than **500 billion** by April 2026, affecting every industry vertical examined, including healthcare, pharmaceuticals, banking, government, electronics, food and beverage, and industrial sectors. The company also observed no meaningful drop after disruption efforts against **IPIDEA**, and recorded a **265%** single-day spike in queries to `ipinfo[.]ipidea[.]io` on January 23. Separate telemetry from Gen Digital linked residential proxy traffic to **7.4 million** malicious incidents affecting **572,000** users since January 2026, with notable concentration in India, Vietnam, and Brazil. Researchers said devices are often enrolled through pay-for-bandwidth apps, free VPNs, browser extensions, bundled SDKs, preinstalled Android TV software, IoT devices, malware, and potentially unwanted applications, sometimes without clear user consent. The reports warn that these networks are being used for phishing, credential stuffing, account takeover, ad fraud, scams, scraping, and reconnaissance, while shifting legal, reputational, and performance risks onto households and enterprises whose IP addresses become exit nodes. Recommended mitigations include **Protective DNS**, DNS log reviews, auditing apps and browser extensions for embedded proxy components, inspecting connected devices, and removing unknown or suspicious software.
Jul 9, 2026