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In a ongoing campaign to increase oversight over online communications, state regulators have cut off access to Snapchat and placed curbs on the Apple FaceTime service, Apple FaceTime.

Official Justifications for the Ban

The state internet regulator Roskomnadzor stated that these services were utilized to organize and conduct terrorist acts on Russian soil, to enlist people and carry out fraud and other crimes aimed at the populace.

Officials said it took action against Snapchat on October 10, even though the move was publicly disclosed more recently.

Wider Campaign of Digital Crackdown

This recent action are part of similar restrictions imposed on key apps including Google's YouTube, WhatsApp and Instagram, and the Telegram service. The campaign of censorship escalated following the 2022 military action of Ukraine.

Since Vladimir Putin, Russian officials have pursued calculated and multi-pronged strategies to control the internet. Actions have involved:

• Adopting stringent legislation.
• Blocking websites and platforms that fail to comply with local rules.
• Perfecting systems to monitor and manipulate internet traffic.

Recent Instances of Crackdowns

Access to YouTube was slowed last year in a case of intentional slowing by the authorities. Authorities attributed the issue to Google for failing to maintain its infrastructure in Russia.

Recently, authorities limited connectivity with widespread outages of cellphone internet connections. Officials insisted this was necessary to counter drone strikes, but experts argued a further measure to assert dominance over the digital landscape.

Action Against Communication Apps

Authorities has also targeted widely-used messaging platforms. The encrypted app Signal and another popular app, Viber, were blocked in this year. Furthermore, authorities banned voice calls on the WhatsApp app and Telegram, justifying the action by claiming the platforms were being facilitating illegal activities.

Concurrently, the state have championed a so-called "national" messenger app called "Max". Experts regard it as a possible surveillance tool. The platform openly declares it will share user data with authorities when asked, and analysts note it does not use full encryption.

Regulatory Basis and Expert Commentary

Per lawyer and expert Stanislav Seleznev, regulations defines any service where people can communicate as an "organizer of dissemination of information".

This label mandates that such services have an account with the regulator and allow Russia's security service with access to user accounts. Platforms that fail to meet these demands are in violation and face blocking.

Seleznev pointed out that potentially a large number of Russians had been using FaceTime, particularly after restrictions were placed on WhatsApp and Telegram. He called the blocking of the Apple service as "predictable" and cautioned that further services refusing to comply with Roskomnadzor "are likely to be blocked – that's obvious."

Entertainment Platforms Also Targeted

In a separate move, the government announced it was restricting the online game platform Roblox, stating the reason was safeguarding minors from illicit content. According to media monitoring group Mediascope, Roblox was the second most popular gaming site in Russia last month, with close to 8 million monthly users.

Although it remains feasible to circumvent some of these restrictions by utilizing VPN services, those are routinely blocked by the regulator as well.