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As part of a continued campaign to increase oversight over online communications, state regulators have blocked access to the social media app Snapchat and placed curbs on the Apple FaceTime service, Apple FaceTime.

Stated Reasons for the Ban

Russia's communications watchdog Roskomnadzor claimed that both applications were being used to facilitate and carry out terrorist acts inside Russia, to recruit perpetrators and engage in fraudulent activities as well as various crimes aimed at the populace.

The regulator stated it initiated the block on Snapchat in early October, although the decision was publicly disclosed more recently.

Broader Campaign of Online Restrictions

These latest moves come after similar restrictions imposed on popular services such as Google's YouTube, Meta's WhatsApp and Instagram, and the Telegram messaging service. These measures of restrictions intensified in the wake of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

Since Vladimir Putin, Russian officials have undertaken deliberate and comprehensive initiatives to control the open internet. This has included:

• Enacting restrictive laws.
• Outlawing online services that refuse to cooperate with local rules.
• Perfecting technology to monitor and manipulate digital communications.

Recent Instances of Restrictions

Access to YouTube was throttled previously in an incident described as targeted interference by the authorities. Authorities pointed the finger at Google for failing to maintain its hardware in Russia.

This summer, officials limited connectivity with broad outages of mobile internet connections. The government insisted this was needed to prevent Ukrainian drone attacks, but experts saw it as another step to increase control over the internet.

Action Against Messaging Apps

Authorities has also moved against widely-used communication apps. Encrypted messenger Signal and the Viber service, Viber, were blocked in 2024. Furthermore, officials banned calls via the WhatsApp app and Telegram, defending the ban by claiming the platforms were being facilitating crime.

At the same time, authorities have actively promoted a so-called "national" messenger app called "Max". Critics view it as a possible monitoring instrument. The platform openly declares it will hand over data with the government upon request, and experts note it lacks strong encryption.

Legal Framework and Analyst Commentary

According to cyber security expert Stanislav Seleznev, Russian law classifies any service where people can communicate as an "information dissemination organizer".

This designation obligates that platforms have an account with the regulator and grant the FSB with access to user accounts. Services failing to meet these demands are non-compliant and may be banned.

Seleznev pointed out that potentially a large number of users in Russia had been turning to FaceTime, particularly after voice calls were prohibited on other messaging apps. He called the blocking of the Apple service as "predictable" and stated that further services that do not cooperate with Roskomnadzor "face blocking – that is clear."

Entertainment Sites Also Affected

In a related action, the government announced it was restricting Roblox, stating the reason was child protection from inappropriate material. Per data from research group Mediascope, Roblox was the second-largest game platform in Russia in October, with nearly 8 million players.

While it remains feasible to bypass certain of these restrictions by employing VPN services, those are frequently targeted by officials as well.