Russia moves to block social networks
MOSCOW— Twitter, Gmail and Facebook have been warned they must comply with controversial Internet legislation in Russia, raising fears that Western social networks could be blocked from the country.
On the orders of Vladimir Putin, the three Internet giants have been given until January to register with authorities and establish servers inside Russia or face “administrative sanctions,” Maxim Ksenov, the deputy head of Roskomnadzor, the federal agency responsible for communications said.
“These three resources must make a decision on locating their data centres in Russia in accordance with the law on bloggers,” Ksenov said.
“They are preparing to do so and want to fulfil the law.”
Google and Twitter both declined to speak about the policy, while Facebook failed to respond to requests for comment.
The “bloggers laws” refer to a package of Internet legislation that critics have described as an attempt to crack down on online dissent and pave the way for blocking social networks in the country.
The laws, which were introduced on Aug. 1, force any blogger with more than 3,000 daily readers to register with the media watchdog, while Facebook, Twitter, and Gmail must register as “organizers of information distribution”.
Companies registered on the list are obliged to retain records of user activity for six months on servers in Russia so the authorities can access them. Several Russian firms, including Yandex and Vkontakte, a Russian version of Facebook, have already registered, Ksenov said.
With the Kremlin maintaining a tight grip on television and other media platforms, social networks have become a key tool of opposition to the Russian government.