Russia to fine people for searching for ‘extremist’ content
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Russian lawmakers back law punishing searches for ‘extremist’ content
Lawmakers on Tuesday approved legislation imposing fines on people reading and searching online for content that the authorities deem “extremist” The move has drawn criticism from some pro-government figures, as well as opposition activists. Critics say the fines the legislation proscribes of up to $63.82 could open the door to tougher charges and penalties. Lawmakers who regulate the IT sector said Meta-owned WhatsApp should prepare to leave the Russian market.
Lawmakers on Tuesday approved legislation imposing fines on people reading and searching online for content that the authorities deem “extremist”.
The move has drawn criticism from some pro-government figures, as well as opposition activists.
Boris Nadezhdin is an opposition politician.
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“It creates real problems for tens of millions of people. “Let’s ban WhatsApp. Let’s ban Wikipedia. Let’s ban searching for some words on the Internet. That’s just Orwell stuff. We will be resisting.”
Opponents say the fines the legislation proscribes of up to $63.82 could open the door to tougher charges and penalties.
The Ministry of Justice’s list of extremist materials stretches to more than 500 pages.
Entities banned in Russia for carrying out “extremist activities” include late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Fund.
As well as what Moscow calls the “international LGBT movement” and U.S. tech giant Meta Platforms.
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On Friday, lawmakers who regulate the IT sector said Meta-owned WhatsApp should prepare to leave the Russian market.
The new legislation targets people who knowingly search for extremist materials online, including through virtual private networks (VPN) that millions of people across Russia use to bypass censorship and access banned content.
Speaking on Duma TV, head of Duma’s information and technology committee, Sergei Boyarsky:
“Let me be clear, this bill targets a very specific group – those actively seeking extremist content because they’re already on the brink of extremism.”
Officials said law enforcement will have to prove that users intended to view extremist materials.
And that merely accessing platforms would not be penalised.
But it was not immediately clear how the authorities would determine intent in an online search.
Russia passes law punishing searches for ‘extremist’ content
WhatsApp faces possible block in Russia. Russians will face fines if they search online for “extremist” content under a new law. Law could have sweeping ramifications for digital privacy and the fate of WhatsApp. Opponents say the fines could open the door to tougher charges and penalties. Lawmakers who regulate the IT sector said Meta-owned WhatsApp should prepare to leave the Russian market as it was likely to be added to a list of restricted software. The law applies only to the search for extremist materials, but there is no guarantee that the list could be expanded in a couple of days. It is not immediately clear how the authorities would determine intent in an online search. The bill was approved with 68% of the vote. There were 67 votes against the legislation in the Duma, and 22,000 abstentions or 14.9% in the upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, before it becomes law on September 1.
Companies Law sets fines for accessing banned material
Opponents fear it could open door to tougher criminal charges
WhatsApp faces possible block in Russia
July 22 (Reuters) – Russians will face fines if they search online for “extremist” content under a new law that tightens censorship and could have sweeping ramifications for digital privacy and the fate of WhatsApp in the country.
The legislation, approved on Tuesday by parliament’s lower house, the State Duma, has drawn criticism from some pro-government figures, as well as opposition activists. Opponents say the fines it prescribes, of up to 5,000 roubles ($63.82), could open the door to tougher charges and penalties.
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The Ministry of Justice’s list of extremist materials stretches to more than 500 pages. Entities banned in Russia for carrying out “extremist activities” include late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Fund, the “international LGBT movement” and U.S. tech giant Meta Platforms (META.O) , opens new tab
On Friday, lawmakers who regulate the IT sector said Meta-owned WhatsApp should prepare to leave the Russian market as it was likely to be added to a list of restricted software.
The new legislation targets people who knowingly search for extremist materials online, including through virtual private networks (VPN) that millions of people across Russia use to bypass censorship and access banned content.
“This bill concerns a very narrow group of people, who look for extremist content because they themselves are already one step away from extremism,” Sergei Boyarsky, head of the Duma’s information technology committee, told Duma TV.
ONLINE SELF-CENSORSHIP
Digital Development Minister Maksut Shadaev said law enforcement would have to prove that users intended to view extremist materials and that merely accessing platforms would not be penalised.
It was not immediately clear how the authorities would determine intent in an online search. The lack of clarity has left many feeling uneasy.
Yekaterina Mizulina, head of Russia’s League for a Safe Internet, a body founded with the authorities’ support, criticised the law’s “vague wording” and warned the law could spark a wave of fraud, blackmail and extortion.
A general view shows the headquarters of the lower house of Russia’s parliament, State Duma, in central Moscow, Russia, July 22, 2025. REUTERS/Yulia Morozova/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tab
“For now, the law applies only to the search for extremist materials, but there is no guarantee,” Mizulina wrote on Telegram. “The list could be expanded in a couple of days.”
Sarkis Darbinyan, founder of digital rights group Roskomsvoboda, said he expected people to start unsubscribing from certain channels and deleting apps.
“I think this is one of the main tasks that has been set: to create fear, to create such uncertainty so as to increase the level of self-censorship among the Russian internet audience,” Darbinyan told Reuters.
Shadaev told the Duma that fines on the Russian population were preferable to banning platforms like WhatsApp and Google in Russia.
Moscow has long sought to establish what it calls digital sovereignty by promoting home-grown services, including a new state-backed messaging app, MAX, but many people across Russia still rely on foreign platforms.
POLITICAL PROTEST
Opposition politician Boris Nadezhdin, who tried unsuccessfully to run against Vladimir Putin in a presidential election last year, led a protest outside the Duma on Tuesday and promised to continue protesting the bill’s passage through the upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, before it becomes law on September 1.
“These amendments have caused a level of resistance in Russian society that has not been seen for a long time,” Nadezhdin said, pointing to the surprisingly high number of lawmakers voting against the proposed legislation in the Duma, which rarely sees serious dissent.
The law was approved with 68% of the vote. There were 67 votes against the legislation, or 14.9%, and 22 abstentions.
($1 = 78.3500 roubles)
Reporting by Alexander Marrow in London and Moscow newsroom, Editing by Mark Trevelyan
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Russia seeks to fine web users searching for content deemed ‘extremist’
More than 5,000 entries are on the Russian justice ministry’s list of “extremist materials” Lawmakers in the lower house State Duma backed the bill by 306 votes to 67. The text will now be sent to Russia’s upper house, where it is unlikely to face any major opposition. It is not clear how the bill would work in practice and whether internet service providers or websites would be responsible for monitoring violations. The legislation has drawn rare criticism from across Russia’s political spectrum, including from pro-Kremlin media.
More than 5,000 entries are on the Russian justice ministry’s list of “extremist materials”, including songs praising Ukraine, blog posts by feminist rock band Pussy Riot and websites critical of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Deputies in the lower house State Duma backed the bill by 306 votes to 67 and the text will now be sent to Russia’s upper house, where it is unlikely to face any major opposition.
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The legislation would impose fines of up to 5,000 rubles ($64) on anyone found to have deliberately searched for or gained access to material on the list.
It was not clear how the bill would work in practice and whether internet service providers or websites would be responsible for monitoring violations.
Russian authorities already block access to thousands of websites accused of hosting “extremist” content.
If approved by Russia’s upper house, the bill will be sent to President Vladimir Putin to be signed into law.
– ‘Something out of 1984’ –
The legislation has drawn rare criticism from across Russia’s political spectrum.
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A few hours before the vote, several activists and a journalist from Russian newspaper Kommersant were arrested for protesting against the bill outside the State Duma.
Russian opposition politician Boris Nadezhdin, who organised the protest, said the bill was like “something out of 1984” — a reference to George Orwell’s novel about a totalitarian superstate.
“This law punishes thought crimes,” he told AFP.
The bill was originally about tightening regulation over shipping clerks but evolved as lawmakers covertly inserted amendments, later spotted by the media.
Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said the legislation was aimed at “those trying to destroy and ruin” Russia using the internet.
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But others, including the head of a state-sponsored internet safety watchdog, have warned that the legislation could have broader ramifications.
The editor-in-chief of pro-Kremlin broadcaster Russia Today, Margarita Simonyan, said the legislation would make it impossible to investigate and expose extremist groups.
The bill would also ban advertising for virtual private networks (VPNs) and impose fines for transferring SIM cards to another person, both ways of browsing with more privacy.
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The Russian Parliament hardens: citizens face fines for … – News Room USA
The Lower Chamber of the Russian Parliament (State Duma) approved a bill on Tuesday. They will threaten the Russians for fines for searching for ‘extremist’ content on the Internet. The bill in question criticized opposition activists, But some Provilators. say it could open the way to more potentially stricter sanctions. It is not clear how the authorities will prove that there was a concrete intention behind the search.
The bill in question criticized opposition activists, But some Provilators. In accordance with it could be granted for the above -mentioned proceedings fines up to 5000 rubles (EUR 55), which, however, would, according to critics, open the way to more potentially stricter sanctions.
As Reuters recalls, the list of so -called. The extremist entities of the Russian Ministry of Justice currently has over 500 pages. The institutions whose operation in Russia is forbidden to their alleged extremist activity belongs to Fund of Fighting Corruption founded by a poor critic of the Kremlin Alexei Navalny, “International LGBT movement“Or American Technology giant META Platforms.
The new legislation focuses on people who consciously seek alleged extremist materials on the Internet, even through virtual private networks (VPN), What millions of Russians are using to circumvent censorship. “This bill concerns this a very narrow group of people seeking extremist content, Because they themselves have only a step of extremism, ”said Sergei Bojarsky, chairman of the Duma Committee on Information Technology.
Russian Digital Development Minister Maxut Sadajev He added that the law enforcement authorities will have to prove that users intended to display extremist materials, and the approach to individual platforms will not be penalized. However, immediately It is not clear how the authorities will prove that there was a concrete intention behind the search on the Internet. Even representatives of several pro -government offices have criticized the legislation, for example, described it as too “scare“.
The proposal has been discussed in the Russian Parliament for a long time, and to enter into force, It must also be approved by the Upper Chamber of the Russian Parliament, Federation Council.
New Russian law criminalises searching for online content deemed ‘extremist’
Russian lawmakers voted Tuesday on legislation criminalising “searching for extremist content online” It is the first time Moscow will hit internet users for consuming rather than distributing materials deemed as banned in further crackdown on dissent. The law targets internet users who knowingly search for content from the Russian extremist register, which contains 5,473 entries and is maintained by the Ministry of Justice. It also enables law enforcement agencies to request users’ browsing data from search engines, telecoms, and mobile phone operators.
The law targets internet users who knowingly search for content from the Russian extremist register, which contains 5,473 entries and is maintained by the Ministry of Justice.
The definition of “extremism” in Russia is open to interpretation, and it enables the authorities to target minorities, political opposition, or stifle freedom of expression or assembly.
For example, in 2023, Russia designated a broadly defined “international public LGBT movement” as “extremist”, allowing for courts to arbitrarily target any member of the LGBTQ+ community.
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Individual users face fines of 3,000 to 5,000 rubles (some €30 to €50) for searching for content deemed “extremist”.
Furthermore, advertising for VPN services is punishable by fines ranging from 50,000 to 500,000 rubles. VPN providers will also face fines if they enable access to blocked websites.
The legislation also enables law enforcement agencies to request users’ browsing data from search engines, telecoms, and mobile phone operators.
A handful of demonstrators appeared in front of the Duma building in Moscow on Tuesday. The protesters carried signs reading “For a Russia without censorship”. Several people were arrested, including journalists from two media outlets.
A demonstrator holds a poster reading “For Russia without censorship” in front of the State Duma, Moscow, 22 July 2025 – AP Photo
In the meantime, social media users began sharing recommendations on how to protect themselves from the new law. These include avoiding Russian search engines, such as Yandex, using reliable VPN providers, and deactivating biometric identification features like fingerprint and face IDs on mobile devices.
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Following the Duma vote, the law is to be submitted to the Federation Council before being sent to President Vladimir Putin for signature.
Putin had previously instructed the government to propose additional restrictions on software from “unfriendly countries”. The popular messaging service WhatsApp could be banned under the expanded measures.
The changes represent Russia’s latest internet restriction, following measures taken against social media platforms and foreign technology companies since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.