Russia's latest war on freedom and apps \ stacker news ~alter

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1211 sats \ 8 comments \ @stack_harder 12h alter_native

No idea where to put this, so I'll just put it here.

As we all know, the UK has been making headlines with its stupid online laws recently, but let's look at a more extreme example of where things can still go.

As usual, Russia is going full retrard and since I keep an eye on all things Russia, here's the latest:

Banning Western Social Media & Apps

Russia has already banned Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (X), Discord, Viber, and Signal.

YouTube has been heavily restricted for ages, with super slow speeds and is basically unwatchable without a VPN.

WhatsApp is still allowed (for now), but all calls from messenger apps are banned already I think (or coming soon), and this is to protect people from getting scammed by anon callers. Keeping people safe, as usual.

Forcing a Government-Controlled "National Messenger" (MAX App)

Russia is trying to do a sovereign internet thing and usually just milk millions of government money and make something shit. The latest shit thing is a new state-run app called MAX (by VK, Russia’s Facebook clone) - it requires passport registration, meaning no anonymity, and basically all the data goes to Russian intelligence.

The app is widely mocked, with users review-bombing it to 1.0 stars on Google Play.

Russian influencers were paid to promote it with cringeworthy ads, and it's kind of become a meme.

Banning VPN Ads & Restricting VPN Use

Russia hasn't banned VPNs yet, but advertising VPNs is now illegal (fines up to 500,000 rubles for businesses).

VPN providers are pressured to block "unlawful" content—defeating the purpose of a VPN.

Criminalizing Google Searches for "Extremist" Content

Searching for banned material (even unknowingly) can lead to fines (3,000–5,000 rubles).

The government claims it only targets "intentional" searches, but since police can fabricate intent, this is a blanket censorship tool.

"Extremist" includes:

Meta (Facebook/Instagram) – labeled a "terrorist organization."

LGBTQ+ content – now classified as "extremist."

Opposition figures (like Navalny’s team) – deemed "terrorists."

So yeah, some opposition bloggers are on the extremist list too, so even a YouTube history of watching their content can get someone in serious trouble.

The sad thing about all this is that the Russian internet used to be a total wild west and the last frontier the gov werent involved in. Probably this started changing during the Georgian War when Russia didn't like the headlines popping up on Ynadex (Russia's Google clone).

After that, the FSB inserted itself into the company, and it's been slowly going downhill ever since, turbo mode since the Ukraine war.

Most older people are too stupid or uninterested to use a VPN, the younger gen is still fairly tech savvy, which is good.

Sadly, even if Putin dies tomorrow, all these stupid laws will remain, and the government will keep squashing people, while a scary majority continue to simp for Putin.

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0 sats \ 2 replies \ @Scoresby 12h

Wow, I didn't realize how bad things were there. Do you think such restrictions are increasing the number of people who are educating themselves about how to use vpns or tor? Or does it seem like most people are just accepting it?

102 sats \ 1 reply \ @openyoureyes 11h

Maybe ask the people in europe or the germans. They have been the first banning "russian propaganda". Now russia is banning western propaganda. There is not much difference, only the western disinformation sector is bigger than the russian. Did you realize how bad things are where you are living?

It is never a good idea to censor information from the other side. At the end you have what you have now: all media is telling the same story. There is no other opinion. I call it propaganda. But you have to fight propaganda on your own ground. There is enough around you, dont point at other nations.

Also not everything is considered bad. A lot of people in the west would also agree to: LGBTQ+ content – now classified as "extremist."

Can you imagine that some points are valid? If the whole western world is fighting russians and the russian culture it needs to be protected. Look at europe an its culture today. Lost and replaced.

30 sats \ 0 replies \ @Scoresby 11h

Did you realize how bad things are where you are living?

This is a great question. I'm sure I don't fully realize how bad it is in the States (where I am).

At the same time, I'm not getting fined for my searches.

Can you imagine that some points are valid? If the whole western world is fighting russians and the russian culture it needs to be protected. Look at europe an its culture today. Lost and replaced.

I don't believe any culture can "protect" itself by trying to block ideas and thoughts. Such actions lead to a cult, not a culture. Look at North Korea.

I agree with you: any governmental attempt to prevent their citizens from communicating with people from other places is misguided. I'm very concerned about the efforts of my own government to control information, speech, and access to the internet. I'm also concerned about other governments' efforts to do such.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @helloboy 2h

But China done this ten yeaes ago. You can image !

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @OT 3h

Sounds similar to China who have being censoring like this for over a decade. I find that the people who want to find a way around it do, while the rest just continue about their lives as if it doesn't matter.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @Tony 10h

Can confirm. Posted this on Nostr last week:

Russia has begun blocking WhatsApp and Telegram calls — confirmed by several friends inside the country.

FYI: they’re now pushing a state‑built “MAX” messenger to fully control and censor communication. This thing is basically a Trojan with a government badge — demanding near‑root access, scraping contacts, messages, and data from other apps.

Starting this autumn, it comes pre‑installed on every new phone sold. Officials are being told to use it, and even school parent–teacher chats are being quietly forced onto it in multiple regions.

Welcome to the gulag, comrades — only this time, a century later, it’s gone digital.

nostr:nevent1qqs2ep3mg8ny8ffqw36h85fjwfq8ywtugn2ym40dkf0gjdcu7df59hczypl4c26wfzswnlk2vwjxky7dhqjgnaqzqwvdvz3qwz5k3j4grrt46qcyqqqqqqgpzemhxue69uhhyetvv9ujumn0wd68ytnzv9hxgqguwaehxw309a5xzan9dckhgmmw0yhryvtfv3jkzuewdaexwqgswaehxw309ahx7um5wgh8w6twv5f8zay0

One more thing to add regarding VPNs:

I left Russia quite a while ago, but my parents are there. After they started blocking calls, I asked my dad to download a VPN, but he couldn’t — Google Play link I shared was not accessible (blocked). Had to share the APK with him. At least Google phones have such an option.