Why Russia is Cracking Down on WhatsApp and Telegram Amid Surveillance Fears

Russia announced Thursday it had blocked WhatsApp over its alleged failure to comply with Russian legislation, days after restricting access to rival messaging service Telegram for similar reasons.

Moscow has for months been trying to shift users onto Max, a domestic messaging service that lacks end-to-end encryption and which activists have called a potential surveillance tool.

Critics say the restrictions are part of a broader campaign by Russian authorities to tighten control over internet use and more easily monitor Russian citizens online.

Here's what we know about both apps and Russia's attempts to push users onto Max.

WhatsApp, which has over 100 million users in Russia, is owned by US tech giant Meta.

The app was the most popular messaging service among Russians aged 25 and over in 2023, while Telegram was more popular among younger users, according to a report by Russian news outlet RBK.

Russia announced it was blocking calls on both applications last August, accusing them of facilitating crime.

It has since progressively slowed down WhatsApp and in November announced it would ban the platform outright unless it complied with Russian legislation.

Russia has asked for both messengers to provide access to data when requested by law enforcement for fraud probes and for investigating activities Russia describes as "terrorist".

Rights advocates fear that would extend Russia's surveillance state and could be used to target critics of the Kremlin, President Vladimir Putin or the war in Ukraine.

WhatsApp said Wednesday that Russia had finally "attempted to fully block" the service, which the Kremlin confirmed on Thursday.

It was unclear how widespread or effective Russia's attempts were.

VPN users in Russia still seem able to circumvent the ban.

Telegram, founded by Russian-born entrepeneur Pavel Durov, is the most popular messaging service in Russia, boasting more than one billion monthly active users worldwide.

Russia's internet watchdog announced it was throttling access to the app on Tuesday, accusing it of failing to follow legislation.

Russia throttled Telegram app to force citizens onto a state app. Its own troops say fire missions now take hours instead of seconds

Milbloggers warn the data goes stale in 15 minutes — by the time orders arrive, it's useless
Russia throttled Telegram —… pic.twitter.com/oBNcBkgbFi

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It was not immediately clear if Russia planned to ban the application outright.

Russian officials -- including the Kremlin -- still use it to issue statements and it is the most popular outlet for pro-government military bloggers commenting on the Ukraine war.

Some have warned that blocking the app would hobble communications around the front line and in Russian-occupied territory.

Durov, who now lives outside Russia, has called the Kremlin's restrictions "an attempt to force its citizens to switch to a state-controlled app built for surveillance and political censorship".

He has clashed with the Russian authorities before.

He was forced out of the VK social media site he founded -- a Russian equivalent of Facebook -- under pressure from the authorities.

Russia spent two years trying to block Telegram, but having failed either to restrict access or to stop the growth of the service, it lifted the ban in 2020.

Max, released by Russian social media giant VK last year, has been touted as a "super app" -- capable of doing everything from accessing government services to ordering a pizza, similar to China's WeChat or Alipay.

The government directed manufacturers to include it on all new phones and tablets starting last September, and it claimed 75 million users by December.

But it has been met with scepticism from some Russians, some of whom have told AFP they were forced to download it by their employers.

Unlike WhatsApp, Max appears to lack end-to-end encryption, meaning messages are not scrambled while travelling between the reader and sender and could possibly be retained by the state.

Sarkis Darbinyan, co-founder of digital rights NGO Roskomsvoboda, told AFP last year that shifting users onto Max could also allow authorities to limit information it does not want users to see.

Russia is moving people to a "kind of vacuum, where they do not have that undesirable information", he said.

(Except for the headline, this AFP story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed)