Last month, a Moscow court fined Apple 2 million rubles (around $34,000) for denying keeping the personal data of Russian users on servers in Russia, part of government measures to regulate online activity.
Ookla, which operates the internet speed test tool, and Zoom Video Communications were both fined 1 million rubles under the same regulation.
The Russian administration has been attempting to establish greater authority over the internet and social media for years. This action has amplified in recent months as it tries to restrict data flow about the war in Ukraine. This Year, in March, a Russian court banned Instagram and Facebook for what it said were “extremist activities.”
For several years, Russia’s communications regulatory agency, Roskomnadzor, has tried to push large tech companies to transfer the data of Russian users to web servers in Russia. As a result, Google, Twitter, and Facebook have all been charged with violating the 2015 law and ordered to pay hefty fines.
Apple was fined for the first time, the Interfax news agency informed. It conveyed that an Apple delegate debated in court that data collection in Russia wasn’t managed by Apple Inc. but by a different entity, Apple Distribution. However, a Roskomnadzor spokesperson pressed that Apple was responsible.
Pinterest, Airbnb, and the video streaming service Twitch were fined 2 million rubles last month under the same law.
