MOSCOW: A Moscow court on Thursday ordered Google to pay a fine of 3 million rubles (nearly $41,000) for refusing to store personal data of Russian users on servers in Russia, a move that denies its It is part of the government’s long-standing effort to tighten its grip. on online activity.
The fine is the first given to Google in Russia over data collection rules. Facebook and Twitter had previously received similar penalties for allegedly violating Russian rules.
Russian governments’ efforts to control Internet and social media use date back to 2012, when a law allowing authorities to blacklist and block certain online content was adopted. Since then, a growing number of restrictions targeting messaging apps, websites and social media platforms have been introduced.
A legal provision requires tech companies to have servers in Russia to store personal information collected from Russian citizens. Russia’s state communications watchdog, Roskomnadzor, has for several years tried unsuccessfully to force big tech companies like Facebook, Twitter and Google to move Russian users’ data into Russia.
The law allows online services that do not comply with the data storage requirement to be banned from Russia. The government has repeatedly threatened to block Facebook and Twitter, but has stopped short of imposing an outright ban, perhaps out of fear that the move would cause too much public outcry. So far, authorities have only banned LinkedIn for failing to store user data in Russia, and the social media platform wasn’t very popular in the country before then.
Pressure mounted on major social media platforms this year after Russian officials criticized him for bringing thousands to the streets to demand the release of jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, President Vladimir Putin’s most famous critic. The wave of demonstrations across the country posed a major challenge to the Kremlin.
Officials alleged that social media platforms failed to divert calls for children to join the protest, and Putin urged police to more vigorously monitor social media platforms and track down those who illegally abuse children. and engage in illegal road works.
Facebook and Twitter have been fined repeatedly this year for failing to remove content deemed illegal by Russian authorities. Roskomnadzor once threatened to ban Twitter and has since March slowed the pace at which the platform can operate.
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