Russia restricts calls via WhatsApp and Telegram, the latest step to control the internet
By dasha litvinova
Russian authorities announced Wednesday that they “partially” restrict calls in Telegram and Whatsapp messaging applications, the last step in order to strengthen control on the Internet.
In a press release, Roskomnadzor, the regulator of the media and internet government, justified the measure necessary to combat crime, saying that “according to law enforcement organizations and many calls from citizens, foreign messengers Telegrams and WhatsApp have become the main vocal services used and extorted money, and to involve Russian citizens in sabotage and activities terrorists. “
The regulator also alleged that “repeated requests to take countermeasures had been ignored by the owners of the messengers”. There was no immediate comments from one or the other platform.
A WhatsApp spokesman said in a statement that the encrypted messaging application “challenges government attempts to violate people’s right to obtain communication, which is why Russia is trying to block it by more than 100 million Russians.”
The Russian authorities have long embarked on a deliberate and multi-formidable effort to curb the internet. Over the years, they have adopted restrictive laws and prohibited websites and platforms that will not comply. The technology has been perfected to monitor and manipulate traffic online.
If it is always possible to get around the restrictions using virtual private network services, these are also regularly blocked.
The authorities have also restricted Internet access this summer with generalized stops of internet connections by mobile phone. The officials insisted that the measure was necessary to thwart the attacks of Ukrainian drones, but the experts argued that it was another step to tighten the control of the Internet.
The Ministry of Digital Development and Communications of Russia said this month, with Internet suppliers, it worked on a “white list” of websites and essential services could access during closures.
In Crimea, which Moscow illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014, Russian officials said on Wednesday that internet stops for mobile phones could last indefinitely.
The government adopted a law last month to punish users for the search for content they deem illicit and threatened to prosecute WhatsApp – one of the country’s most popular platforms – while deploying a new “national” messaging application which should be widely monitored.
The reports according to which the calls were disturbed in WhatsApp and Telegram appeared in the Russian media earlier this week, the users complaining not to pass or not to be able to speak.
According to the Russian media monitoring service Mediascope, WhatsApp in July was the most popular platform in Russia, with more than 96 million monthly users. Telegram, with more than 89 million users, has arrived closely.
The two platforms had their starters with the Russian authorities in the past. The Kremlin tried to block the telegram between 2018 and 20 but failed. After the large -scale invasion of Ukraine in Russia in 2022, the government blocked the main social media like Facebook and Instagram, and prohibited its parent company, Meta, which also owns WhatsApp, as an extremist.
In July, the legislator Anton Gorelkin said WhatsApp “should prepare to leave the Russian market” and a new “national” messenger, Max, developed by the Russian social media company, VK, would take its place.
Max, promoted to a single counter for messaging, online government services, payments and more, has been deployed for beta tests but has not yet attracted a large audience. More than 2 million people registered by July, reported the TASS news agency.
His terms and conditions indicate that he will share user data with the authorities on request, and a new law stipulates his preinstallation in all smartphones sold in Russia. State institutions, civil servants and companies are actively encouraged to move communications and blogs to Max.
The Ministry of Digital Development and Communications said that access to calls via WhatsApp and Telegram could be restored if the platforms “respect Russian legislation”. He said that partial restrictions, announced by Roskomnadzor, applied only to audio calls.
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