"Russian Government Bans Foreign Messaging Apps"

According to a new law that went into force yesterday, Russian government officials will no longer be able to use messaging apps developed and run by foreign companies.  The new law applies to government agencies and organizations.  The law establishes a ban for "a number of Russian organizations on the use of foreign messengers (information systems and computer programs owned by foreign persons that are designed and (or) used for exchanging messages exclusively between their users, in which the sender determines the recipients of messages and does not provide for placement by internet users publicly available information on the internet)." The services listed as part of the ban are Discord, Microsoft Teams, Skype for Business, Snapchat, Telegram, Threema, Viber, WhatsApp, and WeChat.  The move can be seen as part of a broader crackdown against foreign technology services in Russia, which has been ongoing for years, as the Putin administration seeks to squash dissent and control the media narrative.  The administration tries to do so via acquiescent state media channels and 24-hour TV propaganda, but younger Russians are more likely to get their news online, which threatens the regime.  Telegram was formally banned in Russia for a time, as far back as 2018.  The state also currently blocks hundreds of news sites and foreign social networking platforms like Facebook and Instagram.  The administration has also sought to clamp down on the use of VPNs and Tor, which are widely used to circumvent such efforts.

Infosecurity reports: "Russian Government Bans Foreign Messaging Apps"