Russia moved to block WhatsApp, intensifying its crackdown on communications platforms.
Meta said Moscow was trying to push its 100 million Russian users onto a state-owned app called Max, which is unencrypted and thus more easily monitored; it must now be pre-installed on all new phones and tablets sold in Russia.
Telegram is also being restricted, The Verge reported, with users citing disruptions and slowdowns, despite it being Russian-made and widely used by Russian troops.
The Russian internet was once among the most deregulated in the world — making it a global hub for online piracy in the 2000s and 2010s — but Moscow has been tightening control in recent decades.
