Roskomnadzor Blocks Around 150 Popular VPN Services

Evgeny Zaitsev, Head of the Department for Control and Supervision in the Field of Electronic Communications at Roskomnadzor, announced that the agency is currently blocking around 150 popular VPN services. In addition, approximately 700 materials promoting the use of VPNs to bypass restrictions have also been blocked.

According to media reports, Zaitsev shared these statistics at the Safe Internet Forum. “Everyone is aware of the situation with VPNs. At the moment, we are blocking about 150 of the most popular VPN services,” Zaitsev stated.

He also reminded that since March 1 of this year, the agency has begun extrajudicially restricting access to information online that advertises or popularizes tools for bypassing blocks on access to illegal content.

Ban on Promoting VPNs and Circumvention Methods

As of March 1, 2024, a ban came into effect in Russia on the promotion of methods and tools for bypassing blocks, including VPN services. Previously, Roskomnadzor had already outlined the criteria that would be used to add resources to the relevant registry.

Failure to remove such information is subject to administrative penalties, with fines ranging from 800,000 to 4,000,000 rubles. “In the case of repeated violations, turnover-based fines are imposed, ranging from 1/20 to 1/10 of the company’s total annual revenue,” the agency reported.

According to Zaitsev, about 700 materials “that promoted the use of VPNs to bypass blocks” have already been blocked.

Criteria for Blocking VPN Services

VPN services are considered tools for bypassing blocks if they are not connected to the Federal State Information System (FGIS), which contains a list of resources blocked in Russia, are not connected to technical means of countering threats, or if their use generally allows access to blocked websites. Roskomnadzor regularly updates the list of VPNs operating in Russia and restricts the operation of services that violate the law.