WhatsApp accuses Russia of trying to block the app to promote state service

WhatsApp denounced an attempt by Russian authorities to block the messaging application from functioning to force users to migrate to a competing state-controlled service, classifying the action as “a setback”.

“The Russian government tried to completely block WhatsApp to push people into a state-controlled surveillance app“, declared, on Wednesday night, the subsidiary of the North American group Meta, on the social network X.

The service added that trying to deprive “more than 100 million users” of private and secure communication constitutes “a setback that can only reduce the security of people in Russia.”

“We continue to do everything in our power to keep users connected”, continued the same source.

The Russian regulator had already imposed restrictions on messaging platform Telegram this week, in a new stage in a wider crackdown on social networks based abroad.accusing it of violating Russian law, in particular by not doing enough to prevent its use “for terrorist purposes”.

Founded by Russian Pavel Dourov, who acquired French nationality, Telegram is one of the two most popular messaging services in Russia, along with Whatsapp, whose operation had already been largely blocked in the country since January for the same reasons.

“Restricting citizens’ freedom is never the right solution”, denounced Durov on Tuesday, accusing Moscow of trying to “force citizens to migrate to a state-controlled application designed for political surveillance and censorship”.

Authorities encourage Russians to use Max, a new messaging service promoted by Moscow but less popular.

Offered by Russian social media giant VK since 2025, Max is presented as a super application that gives access to both administrative services and online stores.

In the summer of 2025, Russia had already banned users from making calls via Telegram or Whatsapp.

Instant messaging scams are very common in Russia. Authorities also accuse Kiev of recruiting Russian citizens, through these applications, to commit acts of sabotage in exchange for money.