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Russia Moves to Blacklist WhatsApp Over Digital Sovereignty Concerns
RUSSIA, JUL 18 – Russia aims to boost digital sovereignty by restricting WhatsApp, used daily by 68% of Russians, and promoting the state-backed MAX app by a September 1 deadline.
- Anton Gorelkin, deputy head of Russia's parliament IT committee, said WhatsApp should prepare to exit the Russian market as restrictions increase.
- This follows a Kremlin directive issued this week ordering restrictions on software from 'unfriendly countries', including the US, with a September 1 compliance deadline.
- The government has already banned Facebook, Instagram, Viber, and Signal, and slowed YouTube traffic, while promoting MAX, a new state-backed super-app integrating messaging and government services.
- WhatsApp has over two million Russian users and is widely used, but officials view it as a national security risk and a legal violation, with Putin authorizing MAX's development last month.
- The likely removal of WhatsApp aligns with Russia's long-term digital sovereignty strategy and could boost MAX's market share, signaling further withdrawal of Western platforms.
75 Articles
75 Articles
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