Russia's Digital Ministry Weighs Routing All Foreign Internet Traffic Through State Filters and Capping How Much Russians Can Use

Russia's Ministry of Digital Development is preparing to route all traffic from foreign websites through the state's filtering equipment, known as technical means of countering threats (TSPU), and to limit how much foreign traffic Russians can use, Forbes Russia reported. The business Telegram channel Bankrollo summarized the report in Russian under the line, in translation, "Russia wants to introduce coupons for the foreign internet." It added that in the spring the ministry had discussed with mobile operators a charge for foreign mobile traffic above 15 gigabytes a month.

The independent channel Ostorozhno Novosti reported that the restrictions could form part of a bill reforming the telecommunications industry. According to Kod.ru, the ministry would gain the legal right to set the limit. The St. Petersburg outlet Fontanka reported that no specific limits have been set. Experts cited by Fontanka said it is very difficult to separate foreign from domestic traffic in real time, because data routes often pass through other countries.

The TSPU equipment was installed under Russia's 2019 law on a "sovereign internet" and is already used to block or slow foreign services. The new proposal would extend it from blocking named sites to measuring and rationing all foreign traffic. Companies that run on foreign cloud services, software subscriptions and communication tools would be directly affected. So would Russian information-technology firms that serve clients abroad.

The government has not published a draft text, and officials have not said when the bill will reach the State Duma.