Russian MPs propose bill to make social networks remove content considered illegal or 'disrespectful' to state or authorities

A bill has been submitted to Russia’s parliament that would oblige heretofore relatively lightly regulated social media firms to independently identify and block content recognized as illegal or "disrespectful" under Russian law.

Written by MPs Alexander Khinshtein and Sergey Boyarsky, from the ruling United Russia party, the legislation would require social networks to monitor content on their websites for anything illegal, including child pornography, information about the manufacture of drugs and content deemed to encourage suicide.

The law, an amendment of Russia’s social network regulation bill passed in 2017, would also compel the networks to identify anything showing “clear disrespect” for the authorities or symbols of the country, including the constitution, and calls for illegal protests and mass riots.

As things stand, social networks can be ordered by Roskomnadzor, the country’s federal censor, to delete content as it sees fit. If the proposed law passes, from February 1, Roskomnadzor will instead create a list of social media sites with over 500,000 daily users who will be required to check for law-breaking material themselves. If the companies are unable to assess the illegality of the content, it should be sent to the censor for a decision.

According to Khinshtein, the legislation does not include any punishment or sanctions for social media websites that refuse to cooperate, as the expectation is that they will act “responsibly” and follow the rules.

“(We hope) there will be no need to persuade them to do so by additional repressive coercive measures,” he stated.

In November, another proposed bill by Khinshtein was submitted with the intention of punishing foreign websites for discriminating against Russian media outlets. If found guilty of displaying prejudice on the basis of nationality, language, or anti-Russia sanctions, the websites could be fined – or even blocked.

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