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As part of a ongoing campaign to tighten control over internet access, state authorities have cut off access to Snapchat and enacted limitations on Apple's FaceTime service, Apple FaceTime.

Official Reasons for the Ban

The regulatory body Roskomnadzor claimed that the two apps were employed to organize and conduct terrorist acts on Russian soil, to recruit perpetrators and commit fraud as well as various crimes aimed at the populace.

The regulator stated it took action targeting Snapchat back on the 10th of October, though the announcement was only made public more recently.

Wider Context of Internet Control

These latest moves follow similar restrictions targeting major platforms like Google's YouTube, WhatsApp and Instagram, and the Telegram messaging service. This wave of restrictions began in earnest following the onset of the conflict of Ukraine.

During the tenure of Vladimir Putin, Russian officials have pursued deliberate and comprehensive strategies to rein in the digital space. Actions have involved:

• Adopting stringent legislation.
• Blocking websites and platforms that do not comply with Russian regulations.
• Advancing technical capabilities to monitor and manipulate internet traffic.

Other Instances of Blocks

Access to YouTube was slowed last year in what experts called intentional slowing by regulators. Russian officials pointed the finger at YouTube's owner, Google for allegedly neglecting its hardware in Russia.

In recent months, officials tightened internet access with widespread outages of cellphone internet connections. The government stated this was needed to thwart drone strikes, but experts contended an additional move to assert dominance over the digital landscape.

Targeting Messaging Platforms

The government has also acted against widely-used messaging platforms. Encrypted messenger Signal and the Viber service, Viber, were restricted in this year. This year, officials prohibited calls via WhatsApp and Telegram, defending the measure by stating the two apps were being used for crime.

Concurrently, the state have heavily pushed a so-called "domestic" messenger app called Max. Experts view it as a potential tool for oversight. The service admits it will share user data with officials if demanded, and analysts note it is not equipped with end-to-end encryption.

Legal Framework and Expert Analysis

According to cyber security expert Stanislav Seleznev, the legal framework defines any platform where people can communicate as an "organizer of dissemination of information".

This label requires that platforms have an account with Roskomnadzor and allow state security with access to communications. Those failing to do so are in violation and face blocking.

Seleznev noted that possibly tens of millions of Russians had been turning to FaceTime, particularly after calls were banned on other messaging apps. He called the blocking of the service as "expected" and stated that further services failing to cooperate with authorities "are likely to be blocked – that's obvious."

Gaming Sites Also Targeted

In a separate development, the government reported it was restricting the online game platform Roblox, stating the reason was child protection from inappropriate material. According to media monitoring group Mediascope, the platform was the number two game platform in Russia recently, with approximately eight million players.

While it remains feasible to bypass certain of these restrictions by using VPN services, such tools are also often blocked by authorities as well.