Russian authorities said on Thursday they had imposed restrictions on Apple Inc’s video calling service FaceTime, the latest step to tighten control over the internet and online communications.
State internet regulator Roskomnadzor claimed in a statement that the service “is used to organize and carry out terrorist activities within the country, recruit criminals and commit fraud and other crimes against our citizens”. Apple did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
Under President Vladimir Putin, authorities have launched a deliberate, multi-pronged effort to control the internet. They adopted restrictive laws and banned websites and platforms that did not comply. Techniques for monitoring and manipulating online traffic have also been refined.
After Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the government blocked major social media such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Access to YouTube was cut off last year, with experts saying authorities deliberately restricted the popular site. The Kremlin has accused YouTube owner Google of not properly maintaining its hardware in Russia.
While some restrictions can still be circumvented by using virtual private network services, these services are also often blocked.
This summer, authorities further restricted internet access, with widespread shutdowns of mobile phone internet connections. Officials insist the measure is needed to stop Ukrainian drone attacks, but experts see it as another step toward tighter controls on the internet. In dozens of regions, “whitelists” of government-approved websites and services have been introduced that should still function despite the shutdown.
The government also took action against popular messaging platforms. The encrypted messaging software Signal and another popular app, Viber, were blocked in 2024. This year, authorities banned calls through WhatsApp, Russia’s most popular messaging app, and Telegram, which followed closely behind. Roskomnadzor defended the measure saying the two apps were used for criminal activity.
Meanwhile, authorities have aggressively promoted a “national” messaging app called MAX, which critics see as a surveillance tool. The platform is promoted by developers and officials as a one-stop shop for messaging, online government services, payments and more, and has publicly said it will share user data with authorities upon request. Experts also say that it does not use end-to-end encryption.
Earlier this week, the government also said it was blocking popular online gaming platform Roblox, saying the move was aimed at protecting children from illegal content and “pedophiles who meet minors directly in game chats and then into real life.”
Stanislav Seleznev, a cybersecurity expert and lawyer for an online freedom rights group, told The Associated Press that Russian law considers any platform where users can send messages to each other an “organizer of information dissemination.”
The label requires the platform to have an account with Roskomnadzor so it can communicate its needs and allows Russia’s security service, the FSB, to access its user accounts for monitoring; Seleznev said those who don’t comply are in violation and could be blocked.
He suggested that these regulations could apply to both Roblox and FaceTime.
Roblox was the second most popular gaming platform in Russia in October, with nearly 8 million monthly users, according to media monitoring group Mediascope.
Seleznev estimates that tens of millions of Russians may have been using FaceTime, especially since WhatsApp and Telegram banned calls. He called the restrictions on the service “predictable” and warned that other websites that did not cooperate with Roskomnadzor “will be blocked, that’s obvious.”
