Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the government to implement new rules. These rules restrict foreign messaging apps.
Ukrainian intelligence says that these rules are aimed at countries that Russia dislikes. Russia wants to rely less on the technology of these countries.
WhatsApp may be one of the apps that Russia blocks. WhatsApp is an app owned by Meta. Meta is the owner of Facebook, Instagram, and other apps.
Russia labeled Meta as an "extremist firm" in 2022. Only WhatsApp is still operational in Russia.
A Russian senator stated that WhatsApp could be blocked in 2025. This will happen if WhatsApp does not comply with Russian laws.
The future of Telegram remains unclear. Telegram was founded by Pavel Durov. He says that Telegram has no ties with Russian authorities.
Russian authorities have created a new system. This system tracks people. The system is named Max. Max is connected to the VK social network.
All Russian officials must use Max. Max has access to a user's device. This means that Max can see the user's location, files, and more.
Data is automatically sent to VK servers. VK is a popular social network in Russia. It was founded by Durov in 2006. Now it is controlled by the Russian government.