Russia is taking measures to partially restrict calls on Telegram, WhatsApp to counter criminals
Russia’s communications regulator, Roskomnadzor, announced that calls made through Telegram and WhatsApp are being partially restricted in response to information from law enforcement aimed at combating criminal activity.
According to the watchdog, both services have increasingly been used for fraud, extortion, and for recruiting Russian citizens into sabotage and terrorist activities. Despite repeated requests, the companies behind these platforms have not taken sufficient measures to address the problem.
“As a result, steps are being taken in line with law enforcement materials to partially limit calling functions on these foreign messengers. No other features of the apps are being restricted,” Roskomnadzor stated.
The agency emphasized that efforts to stop criminal calls are ongoing. It pointed to the Antifraud system, which has been blocking spoofed-number calls on Russian telecom networks since 2024. Roskomnadzor added that, as a result of this system, such calls have largely shifted to foreign messaging platforms that refuse to provide safeguards for Russian users and society.
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