Thanks to Anastasia Stognei and Max Seddon and the Irish Times for the Headline
Before we all rush to the idea that the Russian secret service the FSB (which replaced the Soviet era KGB) is deliberately blocking the Russian Citizens freedom of expression out of choice. Not caring that it is returning the Russian economy to the late 1970’s where mobile payments were a thing of fantasy and it was faster using a geriatric pigeon then the Russian Postal Service and the connectiviy of e.mail and attachments was a distant dream.
Think the recent Israeli attacks on Tehran which wiped out most of the Senior Government figures. These targeted and effective attacks were facilitated by mobile phone towers and software embedded in Tehran’s video surveillance systems. No wonder the Russian Secret Service are worried.
Up until now the Russian Government has tried to create an appearance of normality in Moscow, as if the population could continue about their normal very Westernised activities with plenty of social interaction, communication and even a cashless society without the worry of terrorism or indeed invasion.
No longer, the threat from external forces led to the FSB requesting and receiving powers to block internet access. Unfortunately now “ordinary citizens” can no longer rely on what used to be a reliable service and connection. It has even hit Telegram which was used by over 90million Russians and now is being hit by “outages ” and lack of connectivity. I suspect a few Apple I-phones have been thrown out of high rise suburban flat windows in pure frustration.
Apparently it has been a major pet project of the Russian Government to offer alternatives to the Global Media Services which up until recently had flooded the market in Russia. There are government controlled applications which try and do what the more established Western applications do , and without all the “outages” .The uptake of these alternatives has increased. Their effectiveness, however, is patchy and one particular service is linked to a subscription to a news channel run by Vladamir Solovyov, one of Russia’s leading propagandists. Not something you wish to have if you just wanted to order some groceries online.
The FSB sounds a rather inefficient Big Brother, nevertheless there is an element of fear all around , not just from suppression of original thought but from how the freedom that technology allows has the potential to be manipulated by dangerous forces. Russia needs clever technologically savvy people to ensure their safety , they cannot afford a brain drain of those skills. Is the FSB fit for purpose?
Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏
thenotsomightyom 