Overview
- Roskomnadzor said it has restricted Apple’s FaceTime, asserting the service is used for coordinating terrorist acts, recruiting perpetrators, and conducting large-scale fraud.
- The agency also confirmed Snapchat was blocked, stating the measure was taken on October 10 though it was publicly detailed only now.
- Reports of FaceTime call disruptions surfaced in Russia in October, weeks before the regulator formally acknowledged the restrictions.
- RBC reported that recent updates to Roskomnadzor’s threat-mitigation systems disrupted VPN access and targeted SOCKS5, VLESS, and L2TP protocols in multiple regions.
- State Duma members Anton Nemkin and Sergey Gavrilov publicly endorsed the measures, as the regulator continues sequential restrictions on WhatsApp and warns of a potential full ban if it does not comply with Russian law.