In Russia, WhatsApp is increasingly less effective and is slowed down by up to 80%. After the Russian blockade of other apps – such as Facebook, Instagram, X, Signal, Viber, Snapchat and Discord – which are no longer available in the country, WhatsApp has now also ended up in Moscow’s sights. Although the block is not yet total, the authorities are apparently taking action to force Russian citizens to download national applications, such as Max (the Russian version of the Chinese WeChat). President Vladimir Putin has in fact called for “strangling” Western tech companies, while Meta is considered an “extremist organization” by Moscow.
Russia against WhatsApp
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For several months, Russian WhatsApp users have been unable to make calls, just like Telegram users, who have been experiencing difficulties sending videos and photos since the end of November. Recently, network speed limits have reached 80%, making it impossible to send messages on many phones and forcing users to resort to WhatsApp Web on PC. Russia’s communications regulator, Roskomnadzor, which began restricting WhatsApp’s operation last August, issued its latest warning yesterday: “If it does not comply with the requirements of Russian legislation, it will be completely blocked.”
Russia: “WhatsApp deeply integrated into the community”
“WhatsApp is deeply integrated into the fabric of every community in the country, from parents’ and work groups to chats between friends, neighbors and family in all regions of Russia,” a Roskomnadzor spokesperson stressed. The response from WhatsApp did not take long to arrive. “We are determined to fight for our users, because forcing people to use less secure and government-mandated apps can only lead to a reduction in security for Russian citizens,” the spokesperson for the messaging app assured Reuters. Market analysts such as Eldar Murtazin of Mobile Research Group have predicted that WhatsApp will be completely blocked by early 2026.
The reasons for the blockade according to Russia
The argument used to justify Russia’s growing blockade is the use of the app by terrorists to carry out attacks and recruit followers. However, the most recent rationale used to justify WhatsApp’s crackdown is multi-million dollar scams, which primarily target older users. Events that were relaunched by pro-government deputies to criticize Western apps. Roskomnadzor also claims that the slowdown of WhatsApp and Telegram has significantly reduced the number of scams in Russia. Furthermore, authorities accused the administration of the messaging network of ignoring requests from Russian security forces, while cooperating with counterparts in other countries. “We do not ban anything, we simply demand compliance with the laws. If a market operator does not comply with these laws, relevant restrictions are introduced,” Putin explained.
