Fine WhatsApp in Russia for not deleting content

A Russian court fined for the first time on Thursday WhatsAppthe courier service owned by the American giant Goalfor not removing content.

Since the Russian offensive in Ukraine in February 2022, the Russian authorities attempt to censor parts of the internet and have blocked in Russia the main American social networks (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter), inaccessible without a VPN (virtual private network).

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WhatsAppthe courier service owned by the group Goaldeclared “extremist” and banned in Russia since 2022, however, it was still authorized in the country until now.

This Thursday a court of Moscow sentenced to WhatsApp to pay three million rubles (35,000 euros, about $37,000) for not removing content at the request of the authorities.

According to Russian news agencies, WhatsApp failed to delete a chat group offering an antidepressant drug whose sale is strictly regulated in Russia.

In the past, Google (owner of the YouTube video service, also authorized in Russia), Meta, Twitter, TikTok and Telegram have already been sentenced for Russia for not removing content considered illegal.

Besides, WhatsApp was already fined several million rubles for not storing the data of its Russian users on servers located in Russiawhich constitutes a crime in the country.

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Source: Elcomercio

jack

I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.