The Californian giant Meta, owner of Facebook and Instagram, is now classified as a “terrorist” organization by Russian authorities, the Interfax agency announced on October 11. This announcement is closely related to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, where social networks have become an information hotspot.
A series of sanctions
Since the beginning of the invasion in Ukraine, Russia restricted access to Facebook and Instagram, which were later accused of censoring Russian media. On March 21, the two platforms were banned by the courts for “extremism”, a few weeks before Facebook was fined for “LGBT propaganda”.
These tensions are explained by the policy of the American company, which applies moderation rules aimed at disinformation content and Russian propaganda. To access it, Russian Internet users must go through VPN software, which allows the connection to be diverted through another country.
The decision to place Meta on the list of terrorist organizations was made by the Russian financial regulator. The main consequence is the impossibility of having access to any banking and financial assets.
Interfax recalls that the WhatsApp messaging application is not affected by Russian sanctions, due to the absence of a moderation policy by the American company. A blockade that has been chosen, for example, by Iran, prey to numerous demonstrations, which has blocked messaging along with all social networks.
Source: BFM TV
