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mandatory content

Russia to Require Netflix to Stream State Television Broadcasts

Russia has in recent months tightened restrictions on foreign internet giants’ operations within its borders.

Russia Fines Google, Meta Record $125M for Banned Content

The penalty against the tech giant marks the first time Russia has imposed a fine based on a company’s turnover.

Russia’s VK Appoints Son of Kremlin Insider as New CEO

Appointment raises fears of more government influence over the social media platform.

Internet Freedom

Russia Blocks TOR Anonymity Service

TOR allows users to stealthily surf the internet and bypass locally imposed web restrictions.

opinion Andrei Soldatov

Why the Kremlin Blocking TOR Is a Big Deal

The encryption software allows users to access websites and pages blocked by the authorities, but TOR has been political since its inception in the 1960s...

contraband chachkis

Russia Briefly Bans Etsy Over Knockoff Designer Goods – Kommersant

Access to the website was restored after Etsy removed the knockoff page that sold fake products from brands like Gucci.

Russia Launches Homemade TikTok Alternative

State-owned media conglomerate launches new video-sharing platform as Russia ramps up pressure on foreign tech companies.

Russian Soyuz Rocket Launches 36 New U.K. Satellites

The satellites are owned by British operator OneWeb, which aims to provide broadband internet everywhere in the world.

don't try this at home

Russia’s Cyber Morality Squad to Inspect ‘Squid Game’ Over Child Safety Fears

The League for a Safe Internet said it received reports of young Russians imitating the show’s violent versions of children’s games.

Russia Touts ‘Sovereign’ Social Media After Major Facebook Outage

Russia says the outage demonstrates the importance of not relying on foreign platforms.

Russia Develops Tech for Monitoring 'Deviant' Behavior

The tech is said to "quickly track the spread of destructive subcultures among young people," preventing them from harming themselves and others.

Telegram Messenger Blocks Navalny Bot During Russian Election

The decision further restricts access to Alexei Navalny's Smart Voting system, following Apple and Google takedowns of his app.

Russia Starts Blocking Google Docs After Navalny Shares Anti-Kremlin Vote Strategy – Monitor

Russia has put increasing pressure on Google to block search results related to Navalny's Smart Voting campaign.

'knock out half the internet'

Russia to Test-Block Domains Used by Navalny Apps, Sparking Online Privacy Fears – Kommersant

Russia’s communications watchdog reportedly urged state firms to switch from Google and Cloudflare’s DNS to Russia’s sovereign system.

manipulated information

Russian Trolls Targeting Western Media: U.K. Research

Researchers said 32 major Western news outlets are being hijacked by pro-Russian trolls to spread pro-Kremlin disinformation.

Russia Blocks VPN Providers in Ongoing Internet Crackdown

Russia said the blocked VPNs had allowed Russians to access illegal content.

Russia Fines Google for Not Removing Illegal Content

Russia has been taking legal action against foreign tech companies for not deleting content banned by the authorities.

Russia Fines Google For Breaching Data Storage Law

This is the first time the U.S. company has been penalized for breaching a controversial law requiring the data of Russian users to be stored inside Russia...

Russia Blocks Navalny Mirror Site Using ‘Internet Isolation’ Tools – NGO

Navalny rolled out navalny.app after authorities blocked his main website navalny.com because of “banned extremist activity.”

internet isolation

Russia ‘Successfully Disconnected’ From World Wide Web in Tests – RBC

Past attempts to unplug from the global internet have had mixed success.

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