Russian lawmakers have approved legislation imposing fines on people reading and searching online for content that the authorities deem "extremist", a tightening of censorship that could have sweeping ramifications for digital privacy and the fate of WhatsApp in Russia.

Moscow

Russian lawmakers have approved new legislation that introduces fines for individuals who search for or read online content labeled as 'extremist' by authorities. The law, which has drawn criticism from both opposition activists and some pro-government figures, prescribes fines of up to $63.82 and could potentially lead to more severe penalties.

The legislation targets those who knowingly seek out extremist material, including through the use of virtual private networks (VPNs) commonly used to bypass censorship. The Ministry of Justice's list of extremist materials includes a wide range of entities, such as the late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny's anti-corruption fund, the international LGBT movement, and US tech giant Meta Platforms. Officials have stated that law enforcement will need to prove intent, but it remains unclear how this will be determined.

Russian lawmakers back law punishes searches for 'extremist' content

Russia is tightening censorship that could have sweeping ramifications for digital privacy and the fate of WhatsApp in the country. Lawmakers on Tuesday approved legislation imposing fines on people reading and searching online for content that the authorities deem extremist. The move has drawn criticism from some pro-government figures, as well as opposition activists. Boris Nedezhdin is an opposition politician. It creates real problems for tens of millions of people. Let's ban WhatsApp, let's ban Wikipedia, let's ban searching for some words on the internet. That's just Orwell stuff. We will be resisting. Opponents say the fines the legislation prescribes of up to $63.82 could open the door to tougher charges and penalties. The Ministry of Justice's list of extremist material stretches to more than 500 pages. Entities banned in Russia for carrying out extremist activities include late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny's anti-corruption fund, as well as what Moscow calls the international LGBT movement and US tech giant Meta platforms. On Friday, lawmakers who regulate the IT sector said Meta-owned WhatsApp should prepare to leave the Russian market. The new legislation targets people who knowingly search for extremist materials online, including through virtual private networks, that millions of people across Russia use to bypass censorship and access banned content. Speaking on Duma TV, head of Duma's Information and Technology Committee Sergei Boyarsky. Let me be clear, this bill targets a very specific group, those actively seeking extremist content because they're already on the brink of extremism. Officials said law enforcement will have to prove that users intended to view extremist materials and that merely accessing platforms would not be penalised. But it was not immediately clear how the authorities would determine intent in an online search.

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