Putin Implements Ban on Foreign Messaging Apps for State and Bank Employees to Combat Fraud

On Tuesday, President Vladimir Putin implemented extensive measures to combat telephone and internet fraud, which includes prohibiting government and banking personnel from using foreign messaging applications.

According to Putin’s directive, staff within governmental agencies, financial institutions, and telecommunications companies will not be allowed to use foreign messaging apps for official communication.

Putin directed his administration, the State Duma, the Federal Security Service (FSB), and the Central Bank to prepare the necessary legislative changes by April 15.

Additionally, these entities, together with the Russian Interior Ministry and Investigative Committee, have been tasked with proposing the establishment of a dedicated government agency aimed at tackling internet and phone scams by July 15.

The state communications regulator, Roskomnadzor, is expected to create a list of foreign messaging services that will be banned under the new amendments, as reported by the RBC news site in February when the ban was initially considered.

Around the same period, Putin instructed security and law enforcement agencies to devise strategies to block “criminal calls” originating from Ukraine and other designated “unfriendly” nations, primarily referring to Western countries.

In December, the Kremlin leader asserted that “Ukrainian phone scammers” had defrauded Russian citizens of more than 250 billion rubles ($2.5 billion) in 2024 alone, claiming that Kyiv had integrated phone fraud into its “state policy.”

During a recent anti-scam meeting with officials, data from the Interior Ministry revealed that crimes related to information and communication technologies surged by 30% in 2023, accounting for 677,000 incidents. Moreover, in 2024, these crimes saw an additional rise of 13%, reaching a total of 765,000 cases.