The lower-house State Duma on Tuesday passed a bill that would require internet and mobile providers to comply with orders from Russia’s FSB security service to shut down telecommunications services.
Lawmakers introduced the bill late last year, arguing it would help protect Russians and state institutions from security threats while shielding telecom companies from lawsuits, as regions across the country increasingly face widespread internet and mobile disruptions amid Ukrainian drone attacks.
The bill, which 393 lawmakers voted in favor of, has since undergone a number of changes, including removing references to “security threats” as justification for shutdowns and changing the FSB’s authority from issuing “requests” to issuing binding “requirements.”
Besides internet and mobile services, the bill would also allow security officials to block regular calls, text messages and even postal services, Russia’s Deputy Communications Minister Igor Lebedev said.
Lebedev previously said some of the bill’s language was kept deliberately vague to “confuse enemies.”
Thirteen State Duma members voted against the legislation on Tuesday.
According to independent journalist Farida Rustamova, the FSB’s shutdown orders are based on a secret decree signed by President Vladimir Putin in August.
Tuesday’s vote marked the bill’s third and final passage in the State Duma. To become law, the amendments to Russia’s Law on Communications must be approved by the upper-house Federation Council and signed by Putin.
