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Amid a ongoing effort to tighten control over online communications, Russian regulators have blocked access to the social media app Snapchat and enacted limitations on Apple's FaceTime service, FaceTime.

Official Justifications for the Ban

Russia's communications watchdog Roskomnadzor claimed that these services were employed to plan and execute terrorist activities on Russian soil, to enlist people and carry out fraud as well as various crimes against citizens.

Officials said it took action against Snapchat back on the 10th of October, although the move was only made public more recently.

Wider Context of Digital Crackdown

These new restrictions come after comparable blocks against major platforms including Google's YouTube, Meta's WhatsApp and Instagram, and the Telegram service. The campaign of bans escalated in the wake of the onset of the conflict of Ukraine.

During the tenure of Vladimir Putin, authorities have pursued calculated and comprehensive efforts to control the digital space. This has included:

• Passing tough new laws.
• Blocking digital platforms that refuse to cooperate with local rules.
• Perfecting technology to monitor and manipulate online traffic.

Recent Instances of Restrictions

Service for the YouTube platform was throttled in the past in an incident described as intentional slowing by officials. The Kremlin pointed the finger at YouTube's owner, Google for not properly maintaining its infrastructure in Russia.

Recently, officials further restricted connectivity with extensive shutdowns of cellphone internet connections. The government claimed this was needed to counter drone strikes, but experts argued an additional move to tighten control over the internet.

Targeting Messaging Platforms

Regulators has also acted against widely-used communication apps. Encrypted messenger Signal and the Viber service, Viber, were blocked in recently. This year, officials prohibited calls via WhatsApp and Telegram, justifying the action by saying the platforms were being used for illegal activities.

Simultaneously, authorities have championed a dubbed "national" messenger app called Max. Experts view it as a potential monitoring instrument. The service admits it will provide user information with the government when asked, and experts note it does not use full encryption.

Legal Framework and Analyst Commentary

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

This classification mandates that platforms establish a presence with the regulator and allow state security with entry to user accounts. Services failing to do so are non-compliant and can get blocked.

Seleznev estimated that potentially a large number of users in Russia had been turning to FaceTime, particularly after restrictions were placed on WhatsApp and Telegram. He described the blocking of the Apple service as "expected" and stated that other sites failing to cooperate with Roskomnadzor "are likely to be blocked – it is inevitable."

Gaming Sites Too Affected

In a related development, the authorities also said it was banning the online game platform Roblox, stating the reason was safeguarding minors from inappropriate material. Per data from media monitoring group Mediascope, Roblox was the second-largest game platform in Russia in October, with approximately eight million monthly users.

Although it is still possible to bypass certain of these restrictions by using VPN services, those are also often blocked by officials as well.