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As part of a sustained crackdown to exert greater control over digital platforms, Russian authorities have restricted access to Snapchat and enacted limitations on Apple's FaceTime service, Apple FaceTime.

Stated Reasons for the Restrictions

Russia's communications watchdog Roskomnadzor alleged that these services were being used to plan and execute terrorist activities inside Russia, to recruit perpetrators and carry out fraud along with other offenses against citizens.

Officials reported it enforced the restriction on Snapchat on October 10, even though the decision was only made public on Thursday.

Wider Campaign of Online Restrictions

These latest moves are part of previous limitations imposed on major platforms including Google's YouTube, Meta's WhatsApp and Instagram, and the Telegram messaging service. The campaign of censorship escalated in the wake of the 2022 military action of Ukraine by Russia.

Under the leadership of Vladimir Putin, the government have pursued deliberate and wide-ranging initiatives to rein in the open internet. Actions have involved:

• Passing restrictive laws.
• Banning websites and platforms that do not comply with Russian regulations.
• Perfecting technology to track and influence internet traffic.

Other Instances of Blocks

Service for YouTube was slowed last year in an incident described as targeted interference by officials. Authorities blamed YouTube's owner, Google for allegedly neglecting its infrastructure in Russia.

Recently, officials tightened internet access with broad shutdowns of mobile internet connections. Officials claimed this was required to counter drone strikes, but experts argued another step to assert dominance over the internet.

Action Against Communication Platforms

Authorities has also acted against popular communication apps. Encrypted messenger Signal and another popular app, Viber, were blocked in 2024. This year, authorities prohibited voice calls on WhatsApp and Telegram, explaining the action by stating the two apps were being involved in illegal activities.

Concurrently, the state have heavily pushed a so-called "national" communication platform called Max. Experts see it as a possible monitoring instrument. The service admits it will provide user information with the government if demanded, and experts note it does not use full encryption.

Regulatory Basis and Expert Analysis

According to lawyer and expert Stanislav Seleznev, the legal framework views any platform where people can communicate as an "information dissemination organizer".

This label obligates that such services have an account with Roskomnadzor and grant state security with the ability to monitor user data. Services failing to do so are non-compliant and may be banned.

Seleznev pointed out that possibly a large number of Russians had been using FaceTime, particularly after calls were banned on WhatsApp and Telegram. He described the blocking of the Apple service as "expected" and stated that further services failing to cooperate with authorities "will be blocked – it is inevitable."

Entertainment Sites Also Targeted

In a separate action, the government reported it was blocking Roblox, stating the reason was protecting children from inappropriate material. Per data from research group Mediascope, Roblox was the number two gaming site in Russia in October, with nearly eight million active users.

Although it is still possible to get around a few of these restrictions by utilizing VPN services, those are frequently targeted by the regulator as well.