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Russia Lawmakers Pass Spying Law That Requires Encryption Backdoors, Call Surveillance (dailydot.com)

A bill that was proposed recently in the Russian Duma to make cryptographic backdoors mandatory in all messaging apps, has passed. Patrick Howell O'Neill, reports for DailyDot:A massive surveillance bill is now on its way to becoming law in Russia. The "anti-terrorism" legislation includes a vast data-eavesdropping and -retention program so that telecom and internet companies have to record and store all customer communications for six months, potentially at a multitrillion-dollar cost. Additionally, all internet firms have to provide mandatory backdoor access into encrypted communications for the FSB, the Russian intelligence agency and successor to the KGB. The bill, with support from the ruling United Russia party, passed Friday in the Duma, Russia's lower legislative house, with 277 votes for, 148 against, and one abstaining. It now moves to Russia's Federal Council and the Kremlin, where it's expected to pass into law.

109 comments

  1. Unenforceable law is unenforceable by kheldan · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Non-Russian-based companies can't be compelled to comply with this, and furthermore some companies are sure to just completely pull out of Russia completely. Apparently Russian politicians are no smarter than politicians anywhere else, and apparently are uncomprehending of the fact that the Internet is not just inside Russia or controlled by Russia.

    --
    Are YOU using the TOOL, or is the TOOL using YOU? Think about it!
    1. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by CRCulver · · Score: 5, Insightful

      apparently are uncomprehending of the fact that the Internet is not just inside Russia or controlled by Russia.

      The Russian government already has a well-mapped plan to isolate the country's internet by 2020, roughly following the Chinese model. Of course, there will always be ways around restrictions, but the aim is not to completely wall off the country, it is to ensure that the vast majority of the population can be kept under tabs and that it doesn't see too many things that the state doesn't like.

      I'm very happy that Russian legislation doesn't apply to the rest of the world. Nonetheless, claiming that this law is only a problem for Russia and needn't bother us here, tends to obscure the fact that there are at least a couple of hundred thousand people in Russia who are just like us, and it's sad if our nerd peers there suffer.

    2. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's also a long-term problem for the rest of the world for another reason. With his massive propaganda machine Putin is creating a nation of totally misinformed racists and nationalists, and one day in the distant future Putin will go and one of the ghosts he has called for will be in charge of megatons of nuclear weapons and an overblown, discontent army.

    3. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There are no plans for a Great Firewall of Russia. The Russkies do however want their share of the cloud pie. This is as much about getting hosting $$$ as anything else. They want servers in Russia, eating Russian electricity and paying Russian taxes.

    4. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I n the US the next choice will be Mr Ill do whatever I want Trump or Ms is good for US security Clinton, in the rest of the world meanwhile, it is becoming fashionable to be sharia loving Muslin in the middle East and Turkey is joining the party, the rise of China as world leader means you can have a dictatorship and do well, in Australia Mr Brain damaged moron Harper believe that his citizens rights to privacy does not apply in the land of the kangaroo, in some European countries right wing nationalism rising to dangerous levels and Britain, the country with most CCTV cameras and the largest genetic database in the world just leaved the EU, coincidently just after passing its own citizen spy law proposed by that barely subhuman self interested cunt that goes by the name of Teresa May, also famous for proposing that the UK should reject the European human rights declaration in exchange for their "her" own law instead, that single cell brained creature and her supporters not able to realize how much harm her decisions will do to their own citizens, democracy and the global community
      In south America populism reigns and Brazil is ATM in chaos, Putin@s Russia is gaining strength on a daily basis despite their economy being in taters, Iran is with Russia and China support making friends all over and with a weakening Europe it looks likely that 5 years from now nothing will prevent the supreme leader to be able to declare its nation a nuclear power (Trump or not Trump) and that will make Israel even madder to the right , North Korea continues to its path to happiness with their latest missile launches.......

      And with the amazing technologies available this days there has not been a better moment for Authoritarianism to finally take over and keep Earth citizens in check for good
      BTW Brexit supporters...The Iranian supreme leader, the Taliban, Daes, Putin, and the North Korean delegation congratulate you with the hope that more follows your example in that breached land of sin

    5. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      What media exactly do Russians NOT have access to? BBC, Voice of America, DW, Euronews, Forbes, The New York Times/IHT -- all accessible in Russian and most have Russian language content. If you don't like the Kremlin's message -- shout louder, but they are letting you shout to your hearts content to the the Russian audience. The critique of the Kremlin is they control all the over the air channels and in a middle income country where cable penetration is like 1/4 to 1/3 the means the Kremlin has the loudest voice but to make the leap that the nation is total misinformed and brainwashed implies that you simply think Russian people are apes. Most Russians have internet access. Nothing is stopping them from reading your Western media in the Russian language or in English. That they choose not to says more about the quality of Russia content in the Western media than anything else. Your Russia reporting is GARBAGE. The fact is Vesti and many of the other state owned news programs are VERY good quality. They may not be wholly objective but the bias is akin to the BBC's and less like Fox News/MSNBC but you Americans are free to keep believing whatever you like. Your image of Russia and Russians is more fiction than anything on Russian news. And the Kremlin is open about the bias in state media. They simply say freedom of speech doesn't mean the state shouldn't have the loudest voice. Nothing says the state can shout louder than you. Freedom of speech just saws they cant actively stop you from doing your bit of shouting.

    6. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by kheldan · · Score: 1

      claiming that this law is only a problem for Russia and needn't bother us here

      Uh, I never claimed any such thing in my own comment so I have no idea why you're attributing that to me, please read my comment again since you see to be unclear on it.

      --
      Are YOU using the TOOL, or is the TOOL using YOU? Think about it!
    7. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by CRCulver · · Score: 1

      That part of my comment was designed more to preempt comments making that claim, which have popped up in previous discussions of Russia's internet policy.

    8. Re: Unenforceable law is unenforceable by joh · · Score: 1

      There's one information missing here: Using an uncertified app is illegal now and you can be fined just for using it.

    9. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Please, do us all a favor, and don't breed. Given the tone of your post, even if you do breed, Darwin's law will slowly wipe out your seed.

    10. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by kheldan · · Score: 2

      Okay; fair enough. This being the Internet and all, it wouldn't have been the first time someone didn't bother actually reading something, then making wild assumptions about the content they didn't actually read. xD

      Yes, it's going to be a problem for everyone, assuming it actually becomes a law, but as previously stated they don't seem to comprehend how the Internet works any better than politicians anywhere else do. Hopefully someone will point out to them that it just can't be done unless they really do want to disconnect Russia from the rest of the Internet, and kick out all non-Russian companies providing services there.

      --
      Are YOU using the TOOL, or is the TOOL using YOU? Think about it!
    11. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by sir1963nz · · Score: 2

      Nice to see Russia trying to become more like the USA

    12. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not to mention the couple hundred thousand or more people here who are taking notes.

    13. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Kjella · · Score: 1

      The problem is that you think of this from the point of view of a western government that plays fair, requires evidence and respects the rule of law (okay, you can stop laughing now). It's not that you can't get PGP and whatnot in Russia. It's that they'll bend the market so most people use services that cooperate with the government. Like Putin wants people to use vk.com instead of Facebook and China wants people to use Baidu instead of Google. And if you can't get them to use a local service, they'll blackmail foreign companies like Blackberry to either comply or lose business or in the worst case get blocked and banished.

      When they get 90% to use "their" service, they'll just label the rest as criminals and subversive elements and snuff it out. Or just put anyone using services they can't touch on a watch/shitlist so they can be given the rubber glove treatment. And if you go over people with a fine tooth comb you can usually find something they do that's illegal. Not that they're above planting evidence or framing anyone if that's what it takes. And if someone's really subversive and covert, well they're probably not making enough noise to rally anyone for support. The government doesn't expect 100% loyalty, they just want to find dissent fast enough that it doesn't spread. As long as they can nip it in the bud, they're safe.

      --
      Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
    14. Re: Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      As a Russian national, pretty much this.

    15. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 2

      Selectively enforceable law is selectively enforceable.

      TFTFY.

      (You forget you're talking about Russia, where laws are nothing more than just a few of the tools which the State has at its disposal for dealing with folks it doesn't like. And "State" is just a convenient abbreviation for "Putin/oligarchs/mobsters/skinheads/bikers".)

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    16. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 1
    17. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 1

      They're not stupid. It's exactly what they want - for Facebook, Skype etc to withdraw, allowing local Russian companies (with servers in Russia, which are therefore subject to monitoring and blocking by Russian intelligence services) to fill in that void.

    18. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Dog-Cow · · Score: 1

      You seem to have issues anticipating the future. Are you, in fact, a dog?

      (On the internet, nobody knows you're a dog. Unless you post shit like that.)

    19. Re:Unenforceable law is unenforceable by Dog-Cow · · Score: 1

      The parents of idiots who spout shit like "Darwin's law will..." should be killed as punishment for not aborting when they had the chance.

  2. This one is for Eric by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    So has Snowden fallen off his high and almighty high horse? I though he and Putin were shirtless horse riding buddies.

    1. Re:This one is for Eric by Type44Q · · Score: 0

      Shouldn't you fascist shills-of-merely-average-intelligence being trying a lot harder than that not to be so fucking obvious? I mean, doesn't it defeat the purpose otherwise?!

    2. Re:This one is for Eric by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It sounds like you need to lay off the hallucinogens.

    3. Re:This one is for Eric by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >he and Putin were shirtless horse riding buddies.

      Oh, that's just silly. Here's the reality

      https://markosun.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/putinsnowden.jpg

      captcha:horsefly

    4. Re:This one is for Eric by youngatheart · · Score: 1

      That's funny!

  3. sounds right by frovingslosh · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Seems like exactly the kind of thing a corrupt government that doesn't respect the privacy and rights of its citizens would do.

    --
    I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
    1. Re:sounds right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

      Ya, the USA is getting more corrupt with each passing day. Oh wait, were you referring to Russia??

    2. Re:sounds right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Yeah, damn russians stealing our ideas again !

    3. Re:sounds right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Which means that the U.S. will be following very shortly...

    4. Re:sounds right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Ya, the USA is getting more corrupt with each passing day. Oh wait, were you referring to Russia??

      You are joking, but yes, this will come to USA as well. Especially if Trump is elected. He wants your neighbor to slander on you if you act "out of the norm" (WTF is the norm?) Paranoia is winning and no one will be safe.

    5. Re:sounds right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So the Americans have already done it, basically?

    6. Re:sounds right by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

      In Soviet Russia, joke explains Captain Obvious!

      --
      Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
    7. Re:sounds right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, shocking that it requires the pomp and circumstance of "law". In the old days they would not have needed the Theatre Show.

    8. Re:sounds right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      He's going to protect you from terror with huge government surveillance while simultaneously reducing the government and keeping it out of your life! No wonder people see him as a God, everything he says is make believe like the Bible.

  4. In Soviet Russia... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    In Soviet Russia, we decrypt you!

  5. Surprised there were that many dissents by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Obviously this is approved by the Tsa\\\ I mean President. Shocked folks voted against.

  6. Rest in peace, 148 against. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    They will be missed.

  7. Excellent! I await the response by fustakrakich · · Score: 2

    Let's hope it's just as newsworthy. I expect to hear all about new technologies that can get around the problem.

    --
    “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
  8. Lets see how American .com's deal with this by terraformer · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Will they cave, or will they stand tall? Because if they cave, the US and the world will follow Putin's lead.

    --
    Who are you? The new #2 Who is #1? You are #617565. I am not a number, I am a free man! Muhahaha.
    1. Re:Lets see how American .com's deal with this by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      It is a good test. Russia's economy is basically poop these days so there isn't all that much to be made there. If tech companies were ever going to give the "see ya" to a country in responsive to invasive legislation, now would be the time.

    2. Re:Lets see how American .com's deal with this by Somebody+Is+Using+My · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Will they cave, or will they stand tall? Because if they cave, the US and the world will follow Putin's lead.

      They'll cave because, except for a small subset of companies, most don't really care what sort of encryption they use (or if they encrypt at all) because it won't be the companies that pays the price for their short-sightedness. Rather than risk losing out on the Russian markets, companies will obediently use the Russian-blessed encryption. When the inevitable happens and somebody (be it criminal hackers or the Russian government) use the mandated backdoor to break into their servers, they'll just pass the cost onto their customers. If their customer database will be compromised - everybody's government identification number / credit-card numbers / health and medical information is out on the web - they will just do what every other company does in that situation: hide the breach for as long as they can and once they are found out send out an email with free 1-year "credit monitoring", as if that makes up for it. Of course, it might be the company's own information that gets stolen, but that stuff usually isn't as valuable to a company as they think it is; they'll maybe take a hit on the market, and make up for it by firing a bunch of their peons. Then it will just be back to business as usual.

      Of course, long-term these sorts of breaches can be devastating; international corporations will wonder why they keep losing out deals to locals who always seem to know what the foreign companies are up ahead of time (because you can bet the government will use this for corporate espionage to better the lot of their own constituents), but rare is the modern corporation that ever looks at anything long term. They'll be too terrified of losing out on those precious rubles today to worry that they might be knocked out of the market entirely tomorrow.

      Now, if we actually held companies accountable for these breaches - especially when using something as stupid as encryption with a guaranteed backdoor - and the company suffered financial or criminal sanctions for their actions, then maybe it would be a different story. But seeing as how the US government also wants its own backdoors, it's unlikely they'll criminalize anyone using encryption that has a secret government key anytime soon...

    3. Re:Lets see how American .com's deal with this by SvnLyrBrto · · Score: 1

      Last job I worked at where I had access to our analytics, total traffic from .ru was less even than that of IE6 worldwide. And the company had decided before I worked there that IE6 users represented so minuscule a share of our hits that they weren't worth accommodating. So I'd expect that they'd have made the same decision about Russians too, if they had some law that required us to do additional engineering work to accommodate them.

      --
      Imagine all the people...
    4. Re:Lets see how American .com's deal with this by meerling · · Score: 1

      Actually a lot of companies will publicly refuse to do this simply because if their customers believe they have a backdoor in their security software, they won't buy it. Also, some of them have ethics that would also cause them to refuse to put in backdoors. You can guess which is which.

  9. Telegram by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...time to ditch telegram?

    sad :,(

    1. Re:Telegram by camperdave · · Score: 1

      Telegrams were rarely encrypted anyway. Besides, Western Union shut down their telegraph services a decade ago.

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
  10. Clueless... by 101percent · · Score: 2

    Do these people really think these companies can create a secure "backdoor to all encryption"? I dread the day I wake up and whatever bullshit "solution" they come up with gets compromised and it's basically cyber Armageddon. Hope they come up with some other impossible shit like, "Feds declare all cars must get 200m/g. Government declares all hamburgers must be fat free." I get what they want, but some things you just can't legislate into existence, especially the goddamn backbone of ecommerce.

    1. Re:Clueless... by Jason+Levine · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Feds declare that the back doors to all homes remain unlocked at all times to allow police easy access. In response to questions about home security, the government said they'd post "For Government Use and Homeowner Use Only" signs on everyone's doors. "That'll stop any burglars," CIA director Brennan said. "Not that there are any burglars. They're purely theoretical."

      --
      My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
    2. Re:Clueless... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Feds declare that the back doors to all homes remain unlocked at all times to allow police easy access. In response to questions about home security, the government said they'd post "For Government Use and Homeowner Use Only" signs on everyone's doors. "That'll stop any burglars," CIA director Brennan said. "Not that there are any burglars. They're purely theoretical."

      Sure, just like criminals willing to commit mass murder always obey weapons laws. That's why mass shootings NEVER, EVER happen in gun-free zones!

    3. Re:Clueless... by youngatheart · · Score: 2

      Yes they do, and it's pretty much possible, and just as stupid as you imply. What it means is that we can expect government keys and government certs and compromises by and of the government implementing stupid things like this.

      We should be cheering for this. When people in power insist on something stupid, sometimes the best you can hope for is an example of bad things that happen when stupid people get their way. If we in the US are very, very, very lucky, maybe Santa will give us bad Russian consequences to point to in our attempts to keep our own government officials from being just as stupid.

    4. Re:Clueless... by 101percent · · Score: 1

      Very true sir. I should add that when you point out their stupidity, they skirt around it, shift blame, and you usually end up in jail. We're never going to advance like this.

    5. Re:Clueless... by meerling · · Score: 1

      ROFL!
      Today I really wish I had some mod points to give you!

  11. So basically by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    They want broken encryption, well, they deserve everything that's coming to them, it's not if, it's when.

  12. Huh?? by Type44Q · · Score: 1

    so that telecom and internet companies have to record and store all customer communications for six months, potentially at a multitrillion-dollar cost

    "You keep using^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H use that word, I do not think it means what you think it means"

    1. Re:Huh?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      so that telecom and internet companies have to record and store all customer communications for six months, potentially at a multitrillion-dollar cost

      "You keep using^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H use that word, I do not think it means what you think it means"

      Nah, that's accurate.

      A "dollar" is just paper, digits in a computer. No redeemability for anything, whether land or gold or silver. You can redeem your federal reserve notes for more federal reserve notes.

      Thus, a $10 "cost" and a $100 "cost" is identical. It is fiction they differ. Been that way a long time...

  13. You're a bit late... as Usual. by rotovator · · Score: 1

    Hey Russkies..

    Don't you think you are a bit late. USA agencies have had this requirements implemented in OSes for long...

    1. Re:You're a bit late... as Usual. by Sir+Holo · · Score: 1

      Hey Russkies..

      Don't you think you are a bit late. USA agencies have had this requirements implemented in OSes for long...

      Oops. Looks like someone will need to call in the sawdust crew and the coroner. #rotovator didn't get to fini...

  14. Remeber by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    it takes congress in both countries to pass totalitarian legislation

    hillary and trump and laughing at you retards, not realizing the president has no power in the grand scheme of things

    fire congress, who are completely sold out to military industrial complex

  15. Actually This WIll Help by zenlessyank · · Score: 3

    Usher in new techniques. Say and think what you want, but Russian computer enthusiasts WILL find ways around this. And so will Chinese and American and Israeli etc. Let the new Digital War begin.

    1. Re:Actually This WIll Help by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Usher in new techniques. Say and think what you want, but Russian computer enthusiasts WILL find ways around this. And so will Chinese and American and Israeli etc. Let the new Digital War begin.

      It only took a couple thousand years for millions of humans to die engaging in actual war.

      I can see that swapping a gun for a keyboard hasn't changed a fucking thing. How pathetic.

      Here's hoping an actual advanced race puts us all out of our misery. We sure as fuck will never learn.

    2. Re:Actually This WIll Help by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      HAM packet radio.

    3. Re:Actually This WIll Help by youngatheart · · Score: 1

      We're working on building one... not sure that it will care about our misery though.

    4. Re:Actually This WIll Help by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, it won't. You really think there won't be accompanying laws that will make it a criminal offence to circumvent the backdoor?
      It just means the feds will be in your face with fully automatic weapons, accusing you of being an evil pirate that enjoys child porn whilst laundering bitcoins for the cartels.
      Why else would you need to circumvent the backdoor?

    5. Re:Actually This WIll Help by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      HAM packet radio.

      Totally controlled by Army and KGB/FSB.
      You would not be able neither buying equipment nor using the frequency without State registration.
      You will be triangulated and prosecuted in a week or so.

      Please remember - it is not "free world" - it is reborn remnanats of USSR

  16. Gilmore's Law no longer applies. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Gilmore famously said "The Net interprets censorship as damage and routes around it."

    Extend that concept a little to "... and Orwellian monitoring and social control", and we can talk about it.

    Gilmore may have been correct... at the time he said it. But that was in an era of the net being dominated by technically astute people, rather than the Facebookian masses, who appear perfectly happy to tolerate any degree of central control and monitoring.

    The internet no longer interprets these things as any sort of problem, and that allows nations like Russia, China, and many in the Middle East to use it as a tool of oppression, spying on their population, and trying to influence human behaviors. Also the US to use it as a means of constant surveillance of everyone, at all times.

    So where is the "circumvention" now? It's absent. Sure, you can find the occasional neckbeard bemoaning the state of things, but those people are one in tens of thousands. Slashdotters like to say, "But GPG through TOR relays through VPNS!!!one!!" as if that is something that 99.999% of the world even understands. Face it, the voice of people wanting an open and free internet is a drop in the ocean of people who Just Don't Care, or actively Want That Control because terrorists.

    So little by little, the walls close in. Each country is emboldened by the successes of the last who tried. Each step is not that big. Each little increment is tolerable. But in the end? The Internet That Was is destroyed, and the Internet That Is becomes more about being the ultimate tool of authoritarians.

    I don't live in Russia. I have several Russian friends in Moscow. I am sad for them, just like they are for me RE: NSA. And we're both powerless to do much but watch.

    1. Re:Gilmore's Law no longer applies. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How we will refer to it in 100 years:

      "Gilmore, when the walls were raised."

    2. Re: Gilmore's Law no longer applies. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ok you win the internet today

    3. Re:Gilmore's Law no longer applies. by axewolf · · Score: 1

      how on fucking earth can you talk so stupidly after Snowden?

      nations like Russia, China, and many in the Middle East

      Everyone but us! When we do it's not oppression!

      Seriously you are mentally disabled by propaganda. Seriously.

    4. Re:Gilmore's Law no longer applies. by mi · · Score: 1

      When we do it's not oppression!

      Because we do not. When Clinton tried to do this, the backlash made him reconsider — to this day, 23 years later, there is still no such requirement in any US law.

      Overzealous executive branch does try it every once in a while, but it is still perfectly legal to own and use unbreakable encryption in the US.

      --
      In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
    5. Re:Gilmore's Law no longer applies. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Everyone but us! When we do it's not oppression!

      Did you miss the part of his/her post where he said, "Also the US to use it as a means of constant surveillance of everyone, at all times", and where he talked about the NSA doing mass surveillance?

      Seriously you are mentally disabled by propaganda. Seriously.

      Uh... I'm not sure it's him who has the problem, here.

    6. Re:Gilmore's Law no longer applies. by kheldan · · Score: 1

      Eventually the Internet will become such a sewer when it comes to being surveilled and so broken from all the walled gardens and blockades from this country and that, that it'll become nigh-unto unusable, and many people (and businesses) will just stop bothering with it. In short this sort of bullshit will eventually kill the Internet completely.

      --
      Are YOU using the TOOL, or is the TOOL using YOU? Think about it!
    7. Re:Gilmore's Law no longer applies. by axewolf · · Score: 1

      Critical thinking for some people can only be triggered by specific cues which they are conditioned to respond to (you)

  17. Remember when the US could point fingers? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I remember a time when the US could point fingers at other countries abusing spying on their own citizens...

    1. Re:Remember when the US could point fingers? by TheGratefulNet · · Score: 1

      modded up and yet, posted as AC (my parent poster).

      see, kind of proves it even more. many people don't even want to have a pseudonym, they go that extra bit to post as AC.

      when people feel like they need to hide that extra level for something that should not be even a casual worry, you know your country has gone too far off the deep end.

      I hope the world can unwind and get back to normal again. someday.

      --

      --
      "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
    2. Re: Remember when the US could point fingers? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Indeed. Growing up, I never imagined I would fear my government or that my government would be so guided by fear.

    3. Re: Remember when the US could point fingers? by youngatheart · · Score: 1

      I didn't grow up* the same way as you I guess. My parents and my friends had little love for the government, though they had and continue to have a love for the country.

      Thus it doesn't surprise me much to see the government acting the way it is or other governments for that matter. However, I wouldn't say they're acting out of fear, rather I'd say they're capitalizing on the fear of the people to attempt to acquire power and control... pretty much as I've always expected.*

      *Most people would call me a grown up, but I'm not done yet.

      *Despite the current atmosphere, posting under my own name because I believe people should be willing to be accountable, and my real name, address and phone number aren't that hidden if you're determined to use my nick here to find them.

    4. Re:Remember when the US could point fingers? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The Clintons got cozy with China and a lot of international businessfolk got rich trading the products of workers with no legitimate recourse to a free press (after Tiananmen especially)

  18. In Soviet Russia... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    In Soviet Russia, Apps encrypt you!

  19. HAVENT SOLD THIS BULLSHIT YET? DUPE by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This is US government propaganda.

    "Look, Russia does it too"

    1. Re:HAVENT SOLD THIS BULLSHIT YET? DUPE by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Do you actually know what propaganda is?

  20. Infrastructure software programmed in Russia by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    There are a lot of software companies selling on north America, but developing their product in Russia. Some of the products are troubling. For example, Netcracker makes software for provisioning and controlling communication services in the telecom industry. There are a great deal of major telcos and cable providers using their code. What does this law mean for something like this? What happens if animosities increase between the east and west and our sensitive infrastructure runs on Russian code? Are there any other types of software that is programmed in Russia that controls our infrastructure? What does it mean for our security? Never mind just Russia either, all that Chinese code too.

  21. Encryption for the world. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    https://kat.cr/tails-1-4-1-i386-iso-multilang-tntvillage-t10922671.html

      , , . . LiveCD VirtualBox . CD USB-. USB-.

  22. Western Pressure is Having its Effect by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The proof is seen in how the Russians respond. Putin needs to make better choices by not responding with desperate knee-jerk policies (they should lead as an example of democracy and freedom and security). Russia simply needs to "eat cake" because they can (but don't completely realize it). BTW I'm half Russian and half Ukrainian, and Canadian.

  23. As if this isnt done everywhere already by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Verizon retains all text messages for 90 days. AT&T retains call logs for 5-7 years! The remotely new thing in the Russian bill is the compromised encryption requirement but as we learned long ago the NSA has taps at every ISP already and is/was reading unencryped EVERYTHING at will so this is just the FSB trying to do what the NSA has always done.

    If its a digital communication just assume every 3 letter agency everywhere is reading it.

    1. Re:As if this isnt done everywhere already by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, new thing is they want to store contents of all communications, not just SMS. Voice, internet, etc.

  24. They Already Had It by Luthair · · Score: 1

    It was the We Break Your Legs and Shoot You in an Alley provision.

  25. Why are messaging app companies "a thing?" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Jabber/XMPP. Add the OpenPGP extension. Problem solved with off-the-shelf ubiquitous commodity software. It's easy, well-established with many competing-but-compatible implementations, and way more secure than all these weird advertising-oriented ones.

    Yet messaging apps are a big business. It's like someone is selling polluted bottled air for $100/bottle to people who live in remote mountains, and people are buying it instead of breathing the easier and cleaner stuff just an inch away from their own body. WTF?

    1. Re: Why are messaging app companies "a thing?" by joh · · Score: 1

      Because people don't want to bother with all that. They want a one-stop solution with all contacts in one place. Like Facebook or WhatsApp, with no need to look for contacts. It's laziness, yes. But it's powerful.

      Also with these new laws in Russia this isn't going to help you at all. They have also outlawed using non-certified apps (with no backdoor) now and can fine you for just using such an app. And believe me, paying a few hundred bucks for using jabber will teach people some laziness very quickly.

    2. Re: Why are messaging app companies "a thing?" by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 1

      They want a one-stop solution with all contacts in one place.

      Except that's not what we have. It seems like every new contact wants me to install yet another new IM app just to talk to them.

    3. Re: Why are messaging app companies "a thing?" by SuricouRaven · · Score: 1

      I've got aim, Skype, Telegram and Retroshare. That seems to cover everyone between them.

      Anyone who only uses Snapchat isn't worth knowing.

    4. Re: Why are messaging app companies "a thing?" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Aim, Skype, Telegram, and Retroshare!? Bah, so mainstream and unclean.

      My primary choices are Silence, GnuPG equipped email, and ChatSecure. Sadly, I've reached the point where I have more secure communication protocols than friends. :(

  26. Now You've Done It by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You just summoned the appity-app-app guy.

    Way to go!

  27. Dear Russia by downright · · Score: 1

    Dear Russia,

    Please cancel our service. Your terms of service suck.

    Thanks!

    The Rest Of Planet Earth

    1. Re:Dear Russia by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Dear Rest of the World,

      Fuck you.

      Cheers,
      Vlad Putin.

    2. Re: Dear Russia by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Dear Lutin,

      You left your bra in my hotel room, please come and pick it up before my wife finds out. Thanks.

      Yours truly,
      Obama.

  28. Oh, stop beating up Bill Clinton by mi · · Score: 1

    Seems like exactly the kind of thing a corrupt government that doesn't respect the privacy and rights of its citizens would do.

    Oh, come one, Bill Clinton is not running for any office any more, stop beating him up.

    --
    In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
  29. No iPhone for You by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Russian people don't give a shit. They will use tin can and strings.

  30. Just for the USA then? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Where's Snowden's outrage?

  31. Competition by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The Russians saw the Americans doing this and felt that Russia had to be competitive. It's all about the competition you know, so anyone who moves towards Big Brother will quickly be followed by all the small minds who want the same.

  32. DNS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    all they have to do is to make a local DNS for Russia and they can block websites easily

  33. Is your back door wide enough? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Can we make a game of poisoning the well, and transfer so much data back and forth they won't know what to do with it all?

    Backdoor is open. Here is a petabyte of data per hour. Where do you want it?

  34. Dear Russia by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Do you want to make it easier for the NSA to listen in on your communications? Because this is how you make it easier for the NSA to listen in on your communications.

  35. Skipjack 2.0 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    In Soviet Russia, Jack skips YOU!

  36. Multitrillion dollar by zedaroca · · Score: 1

    How many hard drives can the ips buy with a trillion dollars? Those Russians must be communicating much more than the rest of the world.

    1. Re:Multitrillion dollar by SuricouRaven · · Score: 1

      It's not just drives. Drives, enclosures, storage management software, purpose-built packet inspection engines capable of extracting information from a multi-gigabit stream, personnel capable of administering such specialised gear, datacenter floorspace and power, legal personnel capable of monitoring compliance and processing requests. It's all going to add up.

    2. Re:Multitrillion dollar by zedaroca · · Score: 1

      I know it is going to add up, but the NSA budget is around 10 billion. A trillion dollars is 100 years of NSA budget, or 20 years of combined US spying. The Utah data center cost was 1.5 billion, and "reports" say it was going to cost 2 billion to fill it with hardware, software and support, and that's for keeping track of the whole world. This bs will cost millions to the ISPs, that will spend more with the Russian connections they are already managing. It can get to billions, specially with the lack of optimization since each one will take care of it's own solutions, but certainly it's nowhere near a multitrillion-dollar expense.
      BTW, I in no way support this type of law. I was just pointing out the huge overestimation.

  37. Wrong icon in the subject by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Should be hammer and sickle

  38. Russia is a joke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Russia is a joke. They're taking too many notes from the U.S.

  39. Apple and Google? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How will they comply? I mean, the whole GLONASS requirement for smartphones was a net plus for location precision, but won't this require the chinese solution, domestic datacenters with lawful intercept built into the infrastructure, like the skype chinese tapping relay?