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Stories from RuNet Echo
26 October 2018
Death by bureaucracy? Russian regulators slap independent news site with sky-high fine
"It obviously means bankruptcy and imminent closure for the magazine."
25 September 2018
Chat bot lets Russians detained at protests request legal assistance
A Russian NGO tracking police brutality developed a chatbot on the popular Telegram messenger that allows people detained at rallies report their arrests and request legal assistance.
8 September 2018
Google caves in to Russian demands, censors videos promoting a protest rally
This latest scandal is unfolding as Google is in the middle of an existential crisis, with its employees revolting against what they see as embracing censorship by their company.
30 August 2018
Is Russian social media giant VKontakte sidestepping the GDPR? One user is trying to find out.
Russia's largest social network VKontakte is in hot water again for playing fast and loose with their users' privacy — this time allegedly violating the GDPR regulations.
24 August 2018
Russian social media giant evades hard questions about privacy failures
One user challenged Vkontakte: "How many times have you challenged the security services in court over their demands to hand over user information? You have that right."
9 August 2018
Russians are facing criminal prosecution for sharing memes online, thanks to anti-extremism laws
Repressive laws and cumbersome bureaucracy are putting hundreds of Russians behind bars for sharing memes online.
31 July 2018
Russian journalists killed in Central African Republic
Three Russian journalists were killed today in Central African Republic, at a checkpoint outside the country’s capital Bangui.
16 July 2018
World Cup out, pension reform protests in: Russia's economic woes take the front seat again
"Football is just a ball, a game. Pensions and taxes are our life. While you're playing with the ball, the thief is emptying your pockets… Keep playing the ball."
30 June 2018
The dark side of World Cup fun in Russia: Online mobs are bullying women getting ‘too friendly’ with foreigners
The World Cup euphoria will fade in a few weeks, but hard questions about women's rights in Russia are still lingering, it seems.
17 June 2018
Russians thrilled by World Cup's kick off, despite looming pension and tax reforms
With the effect of soft power on display for the rest of the world to see, how have Russians been reacting to the influx of large, eager crowds of foreigners?
11 June 2018
Russian journalist forced to resign for criticizing pro-Putin propaganda on Instagram
"We wish the Earth could live in peace, but if our commander in chief Beckons to fight the final battle, we are with you, Uncle Vova!"
31 May 2018
Ukrainian authorities stage journalist's murder, taking ‘fake news’ to the next level
"The lesson here is to distrust reports from Ukraine."
29 May 2018
‘We'll find you and hang you': Russian bloggers threatened for their efforts at doxxing pro-government Cossacks
"It all started with some attempts at hacking the Telegram bot, and then some pretty real threats started pouring in."
25 May 2018
Russian anti-corruption activists are jailed for ‘inciting riots’ based on their tweets and retweets
"...here goes another 'organizing a rally by retweet.' Looks like this time they’re just locking up everyone."
18 May 2018
In the fight against pro-Kremlin bots, tech companies are suspending regular users
Tech companies' one-size-fits-all approach to bot-hunting seems to have dragged a number of innocent victims in its nets.
9 May 2018
As Russia's government effort to ban Telegram falters, digital activists are pranking the censorship agency
Tech-savvy Russians are having fun at the censorship agency's expense while it's attempting to ban their favorite messenger.
7 May 2018
Moscow activists say telcos disrupted mobile coverage during protests, at order of police
Poor or disappearing network coverage during mass protest in Russia is not unprecedented, but now activists are saying the telecom companies are intentionally degrading the service quality on police's orders.
21 April 2018
Troll farm takes aim at American audiences in new web campaign
RIA FAN, a Russian news outlet with known connections to the Saint Petersburg "troll factory", announced its latest project: a website called USA Really, aimed at a U.S.-based audience.
16 April 2018
As Russian court announces Telegram ban, users stand defiant, amused… and worried
And as a year-long battle between Telegram and the Russian authorities ended with the decision to block the app, reaction to the announcement has been passionate and often derisive.
9 April 2018
Russian Newspaper Closes After Years of Tense, Often Violent Confrontation with Security Services
In an op-ed announcing the newspaper’s closure, the acting editor Yuri Grozmani said he had little hope for domestic prosecution of FSB officers complicit in the act of censorship
About our RuNet Echo coverage
Alexey Kovalev is the RuNet Echo editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write.
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