Moscow Courts Impose Fine of 800,000 Rubles on Messaging App Viber
Rewritten Article:
Viber Sanctioned by Moscow Court for Data Protection Flaws
Get the lowdown on the latest fine faced by Viber in Russia
A Moscow court has levied a 800,000 ruble penalty against Viber for flouting Russian data protection norms, according to the press service of the capital's general jurisdiction courts.
The judge of the 422nd Judicial District of the Tagansky District of Moscow has deemed 'Viber Media S.arl' (Viber Media S.ár.l) guilty of committing an administrative offense under Part 1 of Article 13.39 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. The ruling explains the imposed fine is a result of their violation.
While the specific infractions against the messaging app remain undisclosed, the maximum penalty for such offenses is a fine of 1 million rubles.
In early April, a similar fine of 7 million rubles was imposed on Telegram under the same article for declining to delete channels promoting terrorist activities and rallies. Telegram had faced a similar fine of the same magnitude and under the same article back in November 2024.
Although Telegram had earlier been banned by a Russian court for refusing to provide encryption keys to the Federal Security Service (FSB), this recent Viber sanction seems to be unrelated to that prior incident. The Russian courts operate through magistrate, district, and appellate courts, making a "Moscow World Court" an uncommon designation that does not appear to exist in the Russian judicial system.
To dive deeper, it’s worth understanding that Viber's offense likely involves data localization or privacy law breaches, a common issue for foreign tech firms operating in Russia[1]. The Russian government often mandates these companies to store user data within Russian territories. On the other hand, Telegram's case in 2018 revolved around the service's refusal to grant the Federal Security Service (FSB) access to user communications, resulting in a ban that was largely circumvented with clever workarounds[2].
[1] Russian laws often require foreign tech companies to store user data locally within Russia.
[2] In 2018, Telegram was banned by a Russian court for refusing to provide encryption keys to the Federal Security Service (FSB).
- Despite the recent 800,000 ruble fine imposed on Viber for violating Russian data protection laws, the specific infractions remain undisclosed, similar to Telegram's case in April where a 7 million ruble penalty was issued for declining to delete channels promoting terrorist activities.
- The failure of both Viber and Telegram to comply with Russian data regulations, particularly regarding data localization and privacy, seems to be a recurring issue in the technology industry, impacting their financial dealings in Moscow.
- Aside from the ongoing fine situations, it's essential to note that the bans on Telegram in 2018 and the recent Viber sanction appear to be unrelated, as the Russian judicial system operates through magistrate, district, and appellate courts, making a "Moscow World Court" an uncommon designation.
- The technology industry continues to face challenges in Moscow, with companies like Viber and Telegram being penalized for non-compliance with local regulations, posing risks to their standing in the finance sector and potentially affecting the overall industry's success.
