A Russian court found Meta guilty of 'extremist activity'. This ruling further strengthens the ban on Facebook and Instagram in Russia which has been in effect since the beginning of this month.
Russian authorities opened a criminal case against Meta after Facebook allowed users to make violent remarks against Russian soldiers in Ukraine and several other countries. The results of the case were announced yesterday in court.
But not all Meta services are also blocked in Russia. WhatsApp, which is one of Meta's flagship products and one of the most popular messaging platforms in Russia, has managed to escape the trap of blocking.
Some experts believe the Russian court's decision not to block WhatsApp is because the app has become part of the daily life of Russian citizens. According to a Deloitte survey, about 80% of Russians aged 14 and over use WhatsApp to communicate.
Ironically, the criminal case against Meta made WhatsApp lose its throne as the most popular messaging application in Russia. According to data from mobile operator Megafon, Telegram is now the most popular messaging application in Russia after being downloaded millions of times in recent weeks.
With this court decision, Meta is prohibited from opening an office and doing business in Russia. In addition, Russian media must also mark Meta and its social networks as platforms that are prohibited from distributing information and prohibited from displaying their logos.
But Russian citizens who use Facebook or Instagram will not be penalized. Despite being blocked, many Russian citizens try to circumvent this block by installing a VPN.
"Use of Meta products by individuals and legal entities will not count as participation in extremist activity," said a court spokesman, as quoted from Engadget, Tuesday (22/3/2022).
Even so, residents who can still access Facebook and Instagram cannot freely express their opinions. A new law in Russia prohibits the dissemination of 'fake news' or public statements criticizing the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Facebook itself was first blocked by Russia because it was considered to limit access to Russian media. While Instagram was blocked after Meta allowed users to hurl violent remarks against Russian soldiers and Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the invasion of Ukraine.