The subway cars working in the Moscow Metro will soon be equipped with facial recognition systems, reports the BBC Russian Service. According to a tender announced on July 9, the Moscow Mayor’s Office is spending 1.4 billion rubles (more than $19.7 million) on the purchase of the necessary surveillance cameras and specialized software. The first stage …
Moscow subway to deploy facial recognition surveillance system Read More
Twitter has suspended 1,152 accounts linked to the Russian authorities for carrying out “information operations.” According to he company, the blocked Russian accounts are associated with the media website “Current Policy” (“Aktualnaya Politika”), which is engaged in state-backed political propaganda within Russia. The network of accounts was suspended for “cross-posting and amplifying content in an …
Twitter suspends more than 1,000 Russian accounts for state-backed propaganda Read More
On June 9, the online ride-sharing service “Yandex.Taxi” fired a driver from Bryansk, who refused to pick up a Black student from Congo. The incident sparked criticism of the Internet company on social media, with the hashtag #яндекскуколд (in English, “Yandex is a cuckold”) becoming a top trending topic on Twitter in Russia. Many users …
The Moscow Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into compliance with labor laws following mass complaints from couriers working for the Russian online food-delivery platform Delivery Club (a property of Mail.Ru Group since 2016). The company’s workers are complaining about deteriorating working conditions, as well as facing an increasing number of monetary penalties. Meanwhile, Delivery …
YouTube moderators have deleted a Russian campaign video that used homophobic humor to urge participation in an upcoming plebiscite on constitutional amendments. In the video, two gay men adopt a young boy, to the horror of orphanage employees. The campaign ad depicts a hypothetical Russia where voters have rejected new constitutional amendments, including a proposed change …
With the successful launch of the Crew Dragon capsule, Elon Musk’s space travel company SpaceX sent its first astronauts to the International Space Station on May 30. To celebrate the occasion, Russian Internet users released a clever deepfake video of Musk singing “Grass at Home,” a famous song by the Soviet rock band “Zemlyane” (“Earthlings”). Russia’s state space corporation, Roscosmos, …
At least 21 autonomous republics and regions of the Russian Federation are setting up digital permit systems to enforce self-isolation rules: with a few exceptions, anyone who wants to leave their home in those regions needs or will need an official permission. These regional governments are using one and the same application: “Gosuslugi Stop Coronavirus,” …
In Russia, coronavirus patients are facing a mass wave of doxxing attacks, meaning that their identities and private data are being made public on messaging apps and social media. The attacks often stem from leaks of medical and law enforcement data that come directly from doctors and police officers themselves. The victims of the leaks then …
Covid-19 patient data leaks out of hospitals and police stations across Russia Read More
Residents of Rostov-on-Don held a virtual rally against self-isolation restrictions on April 20, using the “Conversations” tool on the mobile apps Yandex.Maps and Yandex.Navigator. During the virtual rally, locals dropped pins near the regional government building and wrote messages about the impact of self-isolation orders, ranging from lost jobs to ineligibility for social assistance. In general, participants demanded one of …
Virtual anti-lockdown protests mount in several Russian cities Read More
On April 2, the Moscow Mayor’s Office will launching a mobile app called “Social Monitoring” designed for coronavirus patients with mild symptoms recovering at home. According to the city, there are currently about 550 confirmed COVID-19 patients who are recuperating at home, instead of in a hospital. “This [app] isn’t intended for everyone’s use. I repeat: this is …
Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin has placed stringent limits on the freedom of movement in Russia’s capital to stem the tide of the COVID-19 pandemic. To model what would have happened if he had not taken those measures and what could happen now that he has, we turned to Moscow State University Associate Professor Mikhail Tamm. The …
[Updated March 25] On Monday, March 23, Russia’s Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin instructed the communications ministry to “organize the creation of a system that can track people who have come into contact with patients infected by the new coronavirus.” Based on individual geolocation data from telecom operators, the system should also notify users about their …
