Russias Roskomnadzor Intensifies Crackdown on Popular Messaging Apps, Targeting Snapchat and FaceTime

Russia’s state communications regulator has stepped up its efforts against foreign messaging applications, blocking Snapchat on Thursday, only hours after it limited access to video and voice calls on Apple’s FaceTime service.

Roskomnadzor stated that Snapchat was being utilized “to organize and carry out terrorist activities in the country” and to enable fraud and other illegal actions, as reported by state media.

The app, known for its ephemeral photo and video messages, had 7.6 million users in Russia in 2022.

Earlier on the same day, Roskomnadzor provided a similar rationale when it announced the limitations on FaceTime, although Russian users had already begun experiencing issues with the app as early as September.

The Moscow Times attempted to place several FaceTime calls to individuals in Russia but was unable to establish a connection. Nonetheless, users can still make video and voice calls through the app if they enable a VPN.

This announcement on Thursday marked the first official acknowledgment that authorities had taken steps to restrict both Snapchat and FaceTime.

These actions occur as Roskomnadzor intensifies its scrutiny of WhatsApp, the most popular messaging service in the country, boasting nearly 100 million users.

Last week, the regulator warned that a complete ban on WhatsApp could occur, accusing the Meta-owned service of not adhering to Russia’s data localization laws and of what it deemed repeated legal infractions related to purported terrorist activities and fraud.

In spite of the official terrorism allegations, the internet rights organization Na Svyazi has accused the authorities of attempting to steer Russians towards Max, a government-supported messaging application that the group claims allows officials full access to users’ private communications.

The restrictions on FaceTime and Snapchat followed closely after Roskomnadzor blocked access to the U.S.-owned gaming platform Roblox, claiming it disseminated extremist content, promoted “LGBT propaganda,” and had a “negative influence” on children’s spiritual and moral growth.

Roblox was the most downloaded mobile game in Russia in 2023.

Reporting by Mack Tubridy contributed to this article.