Putin Orders 'Unbreakable' Internet—But Only For The Apps That Agree With Him

The Kremlin recently issued a decree demanding that a specific collection of services must remain operational during any future internet blackouts. The goal is to keep the digital life of the country running by forcing FSB officials and the government to guarantee access to a massive whitelist, which currently includes everything from payment systems and medical apps to state-run media outlets.

The authorities are obsessively expanding this list, which now boasts over 500 entries. The main criteria for inclusion is not utility, but geography: every single bit of computing power behind these services must be physically located within the borders of Russia. This digital fortress approach includes major players like Yandex, VK, Ozon, and even specific medical monitoring apps for diabetes, effectively creating a state-sanctioned intranet disguised as a necessity.

While the government insists this is all about security and reducing user inconvenience, the lack of a single, public, master list—instead forcing users to check different telcos like MTS, Beeline, MegaFon, and T2—suggests a chaotic attempt to duct-tape a crumbling infrastructure together. It is a masterclass in performative stability, ensuring that while the global web might vanish, the propaganda and the food delivery apps remain perfectly functional.

By turning the internet into a curated TV channel, the state has inadvertently admitted that a truly open network is a liability. Watching a government try to manage the chaos of millions of connections with a list of five hundred apps is like trying to hold back the ocean with a sieve, but at least the delivery drivers will still be able to find the front door when the real world hits the kill switch.