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[Tenrius]

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Stuff is insane. The Russian legislation has had a really bumpy ride the past five years, but this is especially vile. I do realize that most of this is just to show off and/or threaten the opposition (or, rather, any people willing to fill the massive political void that exists today) and it will be business as usual, more or less. That's how it usually works, but there are some things I don't really understand. For instance, how are the phone companies supposed to store every phonecall for six months? How are messengers supposed to provide the FSB with encryption keys they don't have themselves? It's just impossible, basically, or costs a lot.

Failure to report a crime

Beginning on July 20, 2016, “the failure to report a crime” will itself become a criminal offense. Russians will be required to inform the authorities about anything they know regarding preparations for terrorist attacks, armed rebellions, and several other kinds of crimes on a list that has more than half a dozen different offenses. Anyone who doesn't faces up to a year in prison.

Justifying terrorism on social media

Publishing online incitements to terrorism, or even expressing approval of terrorism on the Internet, will be regarded legally as publishing such comments in the mass media, subjecting individuals to the same strict penalties now imposed on media outlets. The maximum punishment for publicly inciting or justifying terrorism is seven years in prison.

Telephone and SMS records, and police access to that data

One part of Yarovaya's legislation that passed the Duma almost without revisions is the language creating new requirements for how Russia's telecoms store data. Now companies like Megafon, Beeline, and MTS will have to store records of all calls and text messages exchanged between customers for a period of six months. And for three years, the companies will need to keep the metadata on all calls and text messages (the information about when and between whom messages occurred, but not the actual content of the messages). The same rules will apply to “the organizers of information distribution on the Internet.” (State regulators will identify the Web resources that qualify as “information-distribution organizers.“) While telecom companies will have to store metadata for three years, “organizers” will only need to hold onto the information for one year.


Data encryption

There's another important amendment aimed at “organizers of information distribution on the Internet”: if an online service—a messenger app, a social network, an email client, or even just a website—encrypts its data, its owners will be required to help the Federal Security Service decipher any message sent by its users. The fine for refusing to cooperate can be as high as a million rubles (more than $15,000).

Missionary work

Yarovaya's legislation tightens regulations on Russia's religious sphere of life, creating a thoroughly broad definition of missionary work, which will now be off limits to anyone not formally affiliated with registered organizations or groups. And any kind of missionary work will now be restricted to specially designated areas. The fines for violating these new regulations can reach 1 million rubles.
Tougher punishments for extremism

The legislation means people convicted of extremism go to prison more often and for longer. Those who don't end up behind bars will pay more money in fines. In some cases, the changes are extraordinary. For example, people currently convicted of financing extremist activities (Article 282.3 of Russia's criminal code) now face up to three years in prison, though they're not always incarcerated. Under Yarovaya's reforms, the maximum sentence rises to eight years, and the crime now carries a minimum prison sentence of three years.

+more at the link

What didn't make it into the legislation?

Revoking people's citizenship. Before the second reading of the legislation, Yarovaya and her coauthors proposed various grounds for revoking Russians' citizenship. This would have applied in several circumstances, including anyone convicted of terrorist or extremist crimes, and even Russians who cooperated with certain kinds of international organizations.

Revoking people's right to leave the country. The legislation's first reading also proposed banning foreign travel for anyone who received an “official warning” regarding “the inadmissibility of illegal actions committed.” This would have applied extrajudicially. For the second reading, lawmakers changed the amendment, proposing foreign travel restrictions only on Russians with outstanding or unexpunged convictions for certain crimes (namely, terrorism and extremism). In the end, the State Duma decided to drop these reforms altogether.

Why these amendments appeared in the legislation after its first reading and disappeared on the eve of the second reading remains unknown.

 

[Heckler456]

I wonder where this'll head over the next 10 years. It surely won't get any better.

 

[Nokterian]

That is some Orwellian Utopia right there..goddamn at encryption and no privacy and jail time.

 

[Azoor]

Putin wants to be the new Stalin apparently. I mean those SMS laws are harsh...

 

[whyamihere]

So strange to think that Yarovaya was once a member of Yabloko. Was she that odious then?

 

[Sinfamy]

If you see or suspect terrorism you of course should report it.
If you're aware of an imminent attack and do nothing you should be arrested.

But this could turn into "report anyone who seems gay" thing.

 

[whyamihere]

LOL THE RT HEADLINE

"Duma gives final nod to new anti-terrorist bill, removes most controversial points"

 

[Mandelbo]

With these laws about encryption that require the service provider to help Russia break into their own system, how does it work if the service isn't actually based in Russia? Surely an American company, for instance, wouldn't have to abide by Russian law? Apologies if this has an obvious answer

 

[Spoiled Milk]

The encryption stuff is bad, but Russia has never been kind to encryption. Most of Europe is heading in this direction, too. The rest of it seems fine.

If these are the most repressive laws since the USSR then I am pleasantly surprised at how far Russia has come.. considering as recently as the early 80s, there was a ban on rock music.

 

[andythinkpad]

Russia still use the USSR anthem anthem as their anthem.

Putin will change the title of President to Secretary General before he die.

 

[bonesmccoy]

Putin wants to be the new Stalin apparently. I mean those SMS laws are harsh...

He's going to set up a royal fam. Tsar Vladimir Putinov

 

[Suikoguy]

This makes Snowden taking refuge in Russia all the more questionable or ironic. Not sure which.

 

[QuantumBro]

This makes Snowden taking refuge in Russia all the more questionable or ironic. Not sure which.

Still better than being forgotten about in some underground military prison.

 

[FStop7]

Revoking people's right to leave the country. The legislation's first reading also proposed banning foreign travel for anyone who received an “official warning” regarding “the inadmissibility of illegal actions committed.” This would have applied extrajudicially. For the second reading, lawmakers changed the amendment, proposing foreign travel restrictions only on Russians with outstanding or unexpunged convictions for certain crimes (namely, terrorism and extremism). In the end, the State Duma decided to drop these reforms altogether.

O_O

#1 way of measuring a country's integrity is asking whether or not its citizens are free to leave if they desire.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Trump likes all of this, no doubt.

 

[kamspy]

How is that different from what the US is trying to do right now with privacy violation. They cut down the 4th amendment as often as possible. The pot is calling the kettle black right now.

 

[FStop7]

How is that different from what the US is trying to do right now with privacy violation. They cut down the 4th amendment as often as possible. The pot is calling the kettle black right now.

Meduza.io is based in Latvia and run by a Russian. Where is the US mentioned at all in this article?

 

[Cuyejo]

The NSA has being doing worse shit like for decades now... USA pls

 

[buru5]

Reminds me of the last episode of Seinfeld, where the gang goes to jail because they failed to report a crime.

Seinfeld predicted it, people.

 

[BobTheFork]

What if you fail to report that someone failed to report a crime?

 

[Bustanen]

Failure to report a crime

Beginning on July 20, 2016, “the failure to report a crime” will itself become a criminal offense. Russians will be required to inform the authorities about anything they know regarding preparations for terrorist attacks, armed rebellions, and several other kinds of crimes on a list that has more than half a dozen different offenses. Anyone who doesn't faces up to a year in prison.

Justifying terrorism on social media

Publishing online incitements to terrorism, or even expressing approval of terrorism on the Internet, will be regarded legally as publishing such comments in the mass media, subjecting individuals to the same strict penalties now imposed on media outlets. The maximum punishment for publicly inciting or justifying terrorism is seven years in prison.

Nothing wrong with these. Anyone supporting terrorism or witholding knowledge of terror plots deserves jailtime.

The rest.. yeah not good.

 

[tfur]

Wow. Hard to believe this is real.

 

[Phantast2k]

The encryption stuff is bad, but Russia has never been kind to encryption. Most of Europe is heading in this direction, too. The rest of it seems fine.

If these are the most repressive laws since the USSR then I am pleasantly surprised at how far Russia has come.. considering as recently as the early 80s, there was a ban on rock music.

Oh yeah?

Dozens in Russia imprisoned for social media likes, reposts

In Putin's Russia you don't need repressive laws to repress people. Also I don't think the 80s Soviet Union murdered dissidents in broad daylight like they do now in Russia.

 

[Knuckle Sandwich]

7 years for justifying terrorism? So some dumbshit can see an attack and go on twitter all "woohoo awesome" and get tossed in jail? That is ridiculous.

 

[commedieu]

The NSA has being doing worse shit like for decades now... USA pls

Exactly.

+

https://techcrunch.com/2015/09/19/reminder-dont-retweet-isis-or-you-could-go-to-jail/

 

[vityaz]

7 years for justifying terrorism? So some dumbshit can see an attack and go on twitter all "woohoo awesome" and get tossed in jail? That is ridiculous.

While this is messed up, it's worth noting that Russia has a big terrorist problem they're constantly fighting.

 

[Tenrius]

So strange to think that Yarovaya was once a member of Yabloko. Was she that odious then?

Wellllll, she worked at the prosecutor's office from 1989 to 1997, which is a pretty big red flag already. Yabloko itself is not all flower and butterflies either, it's been the Kremilin's pet for the longest time (probably by an implicit understanding rather than a full-fledged behind-the-scenes pact). Furthermore, it doesn't look like she's even been that loyal to Yavlinsky & co, considering the exact circumstances of her leaving the party (she reportedly asked the party leadership to move her to Moscow, providing her with an appartment and a car and also make her a Duma member; Yabloko didn't have the funds or political punch to accomodate that, so she went to United Russia who gladly took her in).

With these laws about encryption that require the service provider to help Russia break into their own system, how does it work if the service isn't actually based in Russia? Surely an American company, for instance, wouldn't have to abide by Russian law? Apologies if this has an obvious answer

The obvious answer is that nobody knows yet. I don't understand how this would work at all, because this essentially bans stuff like https. I don't think they're going to go that far, so it'll probably be a "provide encryption keys whenever possible" thing. Then again, my understanding is it's impossible in most cases, so there's no real point either way. As for foreign companies, well, they still work in Russia and they might face a fine and/or be banned here if they don't comply. I really hope it doesn't come to that though.

The data localization law might shed some light on this whole affair. Read here: http://www.hldataprotection.com/201...vacy/russian-data-localization-two-months-in/ A similarly draconian law that required migration of all personal data of Russian citizens into Russia-based data centres came into effect last September. One of the big players (eBay + PayPal) agreed to actually do it and then... nothing happened. Nobody moved anything and there were no consequences The threat of being banned is still in the air, though.

The encryption stuff is bad, but Russia has never been kind to encryption. Most of Europe is heading in this direction, too. The rest of it seems fine.

If these are the most repressive laws since the USSR then I am pleasantly surprised at how far Russia has come.. considering as recently as the early 80s, there was a ban on rock music.

Well, I mean, it's not that Russia is some kind of an Orwellian utopia by default. The USSR was more of less that (although, of course, the world of 1984 is thankfully only possible on paper — it never was on quite THAT scale), but pretty much everything changed with its demise. Two decades later, we're still dealing with the aftermath of those shameful 69 years and everything that is happening now is a direct consequence. I don't think Russia could ever get a clean break with the Soviet baggage right away, it would always take significant time and effort to heal the country completely, but it could have been so much better. Then again, the current scenario is probably far from the worst.

 

[Tenrius]

How is that different from what the US is trying to do right now with privacy violation. They cut down the 4th amendment as often as possible. The pot is calling the kettle black right now.

Meduza.io is based in Latvia and run by a Russian. Where is the US mentioned at all in this article?

What FStop said. It's a Russian news outlet through and through, ran by the former Lenta.ru guys who moved to Riga after the major stakeholder decided they weren't doing a good job (presumably under Putin's pressure). It's mostly in Russian, but some of the material gets translated into English.

As for the pots and kettles, I don't think the issue being present elsewhere eliminates its significance or the need to discuss it. Even if it was an American website, it would still be imporant to talk about.