In Russia, internet censorship is enforced on the basis of several laws and through several mechanisms. Since 2008, Russia has maintained a centralized internet blacklist (known as the "single register") administered by the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor).
The list is used for the censorship of individual URLs, domain names, and IP addresses. It was originally introduced to block sites that contain materials advocating drug abuse and drug production, descriptions of suicide methods, and child pornography. It was subsequently amended to allow the blocking of materials that are classified as extremist by including them in the Federal List of Extremist Materials. According to Freedom House, these regulations have been frequently abused to block criticism of the federal government or local administrations.
A law prohibiting "abuse of mass media freedom" implements a process for shutting down online media outlets. In March 2019, the bill, which introduced fines for those deemed by the government to be spreading "fake news" and showing "blatant disrespect" toward the state authorities, was signed into law.
In June 2020, the European Court of Human Rights ruled against Russia in a case involving the blocking of websites critical of the government (including that of Garry Kasparov), as the plaintiffs' freedom of speech had been violated.
Following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, a rapid tightening of media controls ensued. Western media was blocked, and state-level internet filtering was implemented. Businesses advertising VPN services were banned, and foreign platforms faced heavy fines and blockages; this caused local users to shift to domestic services, mirroring China's Great Firewall ecosystem. This developing "IT curtain" is viewed as a new Iron Curtain, aiming to suppress anti-government information and consolidate state control over the public. By 2026, internet censorship had escalated to the point of widespread mobile Internet outages, VPN restrictions, and the blocking and throttling of Telegram and WhatsApp in favor of the state-controlled Max. Russia has been described as shifting towards a localized state-controlled whitelist internet model.
Status
Russia was rated "partly free" in Freedom on the Net by Freedom House in 2009 (score 49), 2011 (score 52), 2012 (score 52), 2013 (score 54), and 2014 (score 60) and as "not free" in 2015 (score 62), 2016 (score 65), 2017 (score 66), and 2018 (score 67), where scores range from 0 (most free) to 100 (least free). In December 2025, Freedom House rated Russia "not free" (score 17).
In 2004, only a minority of Russians (8% of the population) had Internet access. In May 2008, some 32.7 million users in Russia had access to the Internet (almost 30% of the population).33m internet users in Russia, IT & Telecoms in Russia In 2012, 75.9 million Russians (53% of the population) had access."Percentage of Individuals using the Internet 2000–2012", International Telecommunication Union (Geneva), June 2013, retrieved 22 June 2013 In December 2015, most of the country, 92.8 million Russians (70% of the population), had Internet access.
Russia was on Reporters Without Borders' list of countries under surveillance from 2010 to 2013Internet Enemies , Reporters Without Borders (Paris), 12 March 2012 and was moved to the Internet Enemies list in 2014."Internet Enemies", Enemies of the Internet 2014: Entities at the heart of censorship and surveillance, Reporters Without Borders (Paris), 11 March 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
Russia was found to engage in selective Internet filtering in the political and social areas. The evidence of filtering was found in the conflict/security and Internet tools areas by the OpenNet Initiative in December 2010."ONI Country Profiles", Research section at the OpenNet Initiative web site, a collaborative partnership of the Citizen Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto; the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University; and the SecDev Group, Ottawa
Since 2015, Russia has been collaborating with Chinese Great Firewall security officials in implementing its data retention and filtering infrastructure.
In September 2019, Roskomnadzor began installing equipment to isolate Russia, including mobile phones, from the rest of the Internet in the event the government directs such action, as required by a law taking effect in November 2019. The government's justification was to counter potential cyberattacks from the United States, but some worried it might create an online "Iron Curtain."Tests scheduled: Law on Runet autonomy to come into force soon
As of late February 2022, two of the world's leading social media platforms, Facebook and X, have been restricted in Russia by Roskomnadzor as a wartime measure amid the invasion of Ukraine. Internet rights monitor NetBlocks reported that Twitter and Facebook platforms were restricted, or throttled, across multiple providers on 26 February and 27 February, respectively, with the bans becoming near-total by 4 March.
Agencies Media in the Russian Federation, including the internet, is regulated by Roskomnadzor (Federal Service for Supervision in the Sphere of Telecom, Information Technologies and Mass Communications), a branch of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications.
Roskomnadzor, along with several other agencies such as the Federal Drug Control Service, the Federal Consumer Protection Service, and the office of the Prosecutor General, can block certain classes of content without a court order: Calls for unsanctioned public actions, content deemed extremist, materials that violate copyright, information about juvenile victims of crime, child abuse imagery, information encouraging the use of drugs, and descriptions of suicide. Other content can be blocked with a court order.
Internet service providers (ISPs) are held legally responsible for any illegal content that is accessible to their users (intermediary liability).
History
Internet in 2004–2012 Following his visit to Russia in 2004, Álvaro Gil-Robles, then Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, noted the high quality of news and reaction speed of Russia's Internet media. Virtually all the main newspapers were available online, some even opting for the Web as their sole information outlet. Russia's press agencies (including the most important Ria-Novosti and Itar-Tass) were also well represented on the Web.
In April 2008, Agence France-Presse noted that "The Internet is the freest area of the media in Russia, where almost all television and many newspapers are under formal or unofficial government control.", Agence France-Presse (AFP), 23 April 2008.
As reported by Kirill Pankratov in April 2009 in The Moscow Times: Even discounting the chaotic nature of the web, there is plenty of Russian-language material on political and social issues that is well-written and represents a wide range of views. This does not mean, though, that most Russians are well-informed of the important political and social issues of today. But this is largely a matter of personal choice, not government restrictions. If somebody is too lazy to make just a few clicks to read and become aware of various issues and points of view, maybe he deserves to be fed bland, one-sided government propaganda.Russia "Is No Enemy of the Internet" , Kirill Pankratov, The Moscow Times, 8 April 2009
In a November 2009 address to the Federal Assembly, then President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev acknowledged that Russia was ranked only as the world's 63rd country based on estimates of the level of communications infrastructure development. He stressed the necessity to provide broadband Internet access to the whole Russian territory in five years and to manage the transition to digital TV, as well as the 4G of cellular wireless standards."Address to the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation" (full text) , (digest), November 2009
In 2010, OpenNet Initiative noted that while "the absence of overt state-mandated Internet filtering in Russia has led some observers to conclude that the Russian Internet represents an open and uncontested space," the government had a consistent, strategic approach to taking control over the information in electronic media. 2007 cyberattacks on Estonia and cyberattacks during the Russo-Georgian War (2008) may have been "an indication of the government's active interest in mobilizing and shaping activities in Russian cyberspace."
Developments since 2012 Establishment and expansion of the blacklist First countrywide judicial censorship measures were taken by the government in the wake of the 2011–13 Russian protests. This included the Internet blacklist law, implemented in November 2012. The criteria for inclusion in the blacklist initially included child pornography, advocating suicide, and illegal drugs. In 2013, the blacklist law was amended with the content "suspected in extremism," "calling for illegal meetings," "inciting hatred," and "violating the established order."
The law allowed for flexible interpretation and inclusion of a wide array of content, which was frequently abused by law enforcement and administration for blanket blocking of publications criticizing state policy or describing daily problems of life in Russia.
Popular opposition websites encouraging protests against the court rulings in Bolotnaya Square case were for example blocked for "calling for illegal action"; Dumb Ways to Die, a public transport safety video, was blocked as "suicide propaganda"; websites discussing federalization of Siberia—as "attack on the foundations of the constitution"; an article on a gay activist being fired from job as well as LGBT support communities—as "propaganda of non-traditional sex relations"; publishing Pussy Riot logo—as "insult of the feelings of believers"; criticism of overspending of local governor—"insult of the authorities"; publishing a poem in support of Ukraine—"inciting hatred" etc. A separate class of materials blocked due to "extremism" includes several religious publications, mostly Muslim and Jehovah's Witnesses. Bans can be challenged in courts, and in some cases, these appeals are successful.
Proposals for further controls In 2015, Russia's Security Council proposed a number of further Internet controls to prevent hostile "influence on the population of the country, especially young people, intended to weaken cultural and spiritual values." Prevention of this "influence" also includes active countermeasures such as actions targeted at the population and young people of the states attempting to weaken Russia's cultural values. Another initiative proposes giving Roskomnadzor the right to block any domain within the .ru TLD without a court order.
In February 2016, the business daily Vedomosti reported on a draft law by the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications titled "On an Autonomous Internet System." The bill calls for placing the domains .ru and .рф under government control and would make installation of the Russian state surveillance system SORM mandatory.
Ban on VPN and anonymizer providers A ban on all software and websites related to circumventing internet filtering in Russia, including VPN software, anonymizers, and instructions on how to circumvent government website blocking, was passed in 2017.
According to data published by the Russian Society for Internet Users, founded by members of the Presidential Council for Human Rights, instances of censorship increased by a factor of 1.5 from 2013 to 2014. The incidents documented include not only instances of Internet blocking but also the use of force to shut down Internet users, such as beatings of bloggers or police raids.
Increase in Internet censorship from 2014