Russia has now cut off WhatsApp nationwide, turning months of throttling into a full-scale ban and pushing users toward a state-backed messaging app. Officials say the foreign service failed to follow local rules, while critics warn that the promoted replacement, called MAX, gives the state far more visibility into private chats. The clash turns a technical move into a new front in Russia’s long fight with Western tech companies.
From partial throttling to a full ban
The decision to block WhatsApp did not come out of nowhere. It capped a gradual squeeze on foreign messengers in Russia that began months earlier. Regulators first limited calls and some functions, and by late summer many users could complete text chats but not voice connections, as Roskomnadzor tightened controls on WhatsApp and similar apps. Messaging platforms had already moved to the center of political and social life, so each new restriction hit not just casual conversations but also business groups, school chats, and local community networks.
WhatsApp’s parent company accused Russian authorities of trying to shut the service down completely, saying the state was using network tools to block connections and force people onto domestic platforms. Company statements linked the disruption to a broader effort by Russian authorities to steer users to a government-backed app. Over time, many people in the country found they could only reach WhatsApp through a virtual private network, and some of those users started shifting to other tools as the pressure grew.
Kremlin justification and the legal framing
The Kremlin has framed the ban as a matter of law and sovereignty rather than censorship. Officials say WhatsApp failed to comply with data and content rules, and that Russia has confirmed it has blocked the platform because it did not abide by domestic legislation. In public comments, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has argued that the state is entitled to demand that any foreign service follow local requirements or risk losing access to the market.
Authorities have also tied the move to security concerns that hardened after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Officials say Western platforms can be used for disinformation and hostile campaigns, and argue that domestic control over messaging infrastructure is a strategic need in wartime. In that framing, the WhatsApp ban is part of a larger effort by Russia to reduce reliance on foreign technology and keep communications under closer national oversight.
MAX, the promoted state-backed alternative
As WhatsApp’s reach inside the country shrinks, the government is actively steering users toward a homegrown platform called MAX. Officials have been promoting MAX as the preferred replacement for foreign messengers, presenting it as a secure and patriotic option. Earlier guidance had already made clear that phones sold in the country should come with domestic apps, and MAX is now at the center of that push to rebuild the messaging market under Russian control.
Critics, however, say MAX is less a neutral service and more a surveillance tool, because it does not offer the same end-to-end encryption that WhatsApp built its brand on. Another report notes that Moscow has for months tried to move Russian users to Max, a domestic messenger that, according to that account, does not use end-to-end encryption at all. A separate analysis describes how, since its official release, MAX messenger has become the official Russian alternative to WhatsApp, cementing its role at the heart of the state’s digital strategy.
Telegram squeezed, VPNs rise, habits shift
WhatsApp is not the only target. Earlier this week, Moscow also started restricting access to Telegram, the popular chat app founded by Pavel Durov, cutting off another major channel for both everyday talk and political content. The same report notes that these new limits arrived on top of the WhatsApp crackdown, tightening the net around foreign and semi-foreign services. In that context, the state’s promotion of a domestic app looks less like one option among many and more like a funnel that leaves users with few independent choices.
For people inside the country, the practical response has been a mix of workarounds and migration. One account describes how, since the first restrictions, many Russians could reach WhatsApp only with a virtual private network and started switching to other platforms as the blocks hardened. A separate technology brief notes that WhatsApp says Russia has tried to fully block the app as part of a wider control campaign that also hits other Western platforms, pushing users either to domestic tools or to the grey zone of VPNs.
Geopolitics, surveillance fears and what comes next
The messaging crackdown sits inside a broader conflict between Moscow and Western tech companies that intensified after the war in Ukraine began. A detailed report explains how a simmering dispute with foreign providers escalated after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine, and how Russian authorities then widened controls on Western apps. Another account notes that the company behind WhatsApp links the current move to the active promotion of the state-run platform Max, which is intended to replace foreign apps in the Russian market.
Policy is now moving beyond simple blocking orders into hardware rules that will shape what people find on their phones from the first boot. One report, citing Reuters, says the domestic alternative must soon be pre-installed on mobile devices, making MAX the default choice for new users. Video explainers in Russian, including one where WhatsApp warns that authorities could block service for about 100 million local users, highlight how large the shift could be. Short clips shared on social platforms, such as a YouTube short that tracks the ban, and posts that show Russian authorities being accused of restricting private communications, underline the same point: the fight over WhatsApp is not only about one app, it is about who controls the channels through which Russians talk to one another.
