Vladimir Putin
Putin Defends Russia Mobile Internet Blackouts as Security Move
Putin’s defense of internet blackouts confirms what Russians already suspected: the off switch belongs to the security services now.
Russia Blocks WhatsApp Nationwide, Pushing 100 Million Users Toward Kremlin-Backed App Max
Russia’s 100 million WhatsApp users are being nudged toward Max, a Kremlin-friendly app that doesn’t offer end-to-end encryption.
Russia Restricts Telegram Access to Push Citizens Toward State-Controlled Max App, Pavel Durov Says
Durov’s defiance comes as Moscow tries the same playbook that failed in Iran, only this time with a homegrown WeChat waiting in the wings.
Russia Blocks Voice Calls on WhatsApp and Telegram
Russia’s grip on foreign tech tightens one feature at a time.
Russia Pushes State-Backed Messaging App “Max” as it Moves to Ban WhatsApp
WhatsApp’s potential exit marks another milestone in Russia’s quiet war to nationalize the internet one app at a time.
Russia To Expand Its Surveillance Network, Plans To Tap Into Private Surveillance Networks, Roll Out Facial Recognition
An escalation in the removal of privacy.
Russia Widens Its VPN Block
New levels of blocking regarding the privacy and free speech tools.
Putin’s Latest Law Criminalizes Online Anonymity, Mandates Identity Checks For Platform Use
The latest in a series of internet restrictions expected over the next year.
Russia’s CBDC, The Digital Ruble, To Begin in August
A centralized power grab.
Russia deploys facial recognition tech to track down draft-dodgers
Rounding up dissenters using surveillance.
Oversight Board tells Facebook to allow “death to Khamenei”
New ruling suggests allowing users to call for the death of Iran’s leader because people mean it figuratively.
New Russian decree enables new online censorship powers
Russia has given itself new powers to block websites.