Telegram and WhatsApp* are blocked by authorities in southern Russia.

WhatsApp* and Telegram messaging app users in southern Russia continue to report app outages. Roskomnadzor stated that the authorities have restricted the use of foreign messaging apps to "counter criminals."

As reported by "Caucasian Knot," Telegram and WhatsApp* messaging apps were unavailable to users in southern Russia during the afternoon and evening of October 21. Complaints about messaging app outages came from Krasnodar Krai, Adygea, Volgograd, and Astrakhan Oblasts, as well as Kabardino-Balkaria, North Ossetia, and Stavropol Krai. Information security expert Alexei Uchakin suggested that authorities are testing tools to block and filter calls via instant messaging apps.

Roskomnadzor is partially restricting the operation of foreign instant messaging apps Telegram and WhatsApp*, causing problems accessing the apps in southern Russia, TASS reported on October 22.

The agency responded to a state news agency's inquiry about the causes of messaging app outages in the country's southern regions, specifically Rostov-on-Don, Sochi, and Adygea. Roskomnadzor's response confirmed that the problems with Telegram and WhatsApp* are due to government actions.

The agency explained that the messaging apps are being restricted "to combat criminals" using Telegram and WhatsApp* to extort money and lure Russians "into sabotage and terrorist activities."

"Repeated demands for countermeasures by messaging app owners have been ignored," Interfax quotes Roskomnadzor as saying.

Restrictions on Telegram and WhatsApp* began on the afternoon of October 20; in the first few days, they affected southern regions, but on October 21 and 22, they also affected other parts of the country, the "On the Line" project reported on the evening of October 22. According to the project, residents of 34 Russian regions have already complained about problems with the messaging apps.

According to DownDetector, a new peak in complaints about Telegram outages was recorded between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m. Moscow time on October 22. The Volgograd region was among the regions receiving the most complaints. Users began complaining about WhatsApp* outages starting at 8:30 a.m. Moscow time, peaking around 12:15 p.m. Moscow time and remaining high until around 5:30 p.m. Moscow time. In comments, DownDetector users indicate that this messenger is down, particularly in Krasnodar, Vladikavkaz, and other towns in North Ossetia.

"Caucasian Knot" wrote that Telegram access issues are regularly observed in Dagestan. In March, the republic's Minister of Digital Development, Yuri Gamzatov, announced that the Telegram messenger had been blocked and was no longer operational in Dagestan and Chechnya. He said the decision was made at the federal level, following a recommendation from law enforcement agencies, as Telegram is often used by adversaries, as exemplified by the unrest at Makhachkala airport [in October 2023]. Authorities only acknowledged the blocking of the messenger in March, although by that time access to Telegram had been lost for several months, according to local residents. The temporary unblocking of Telegram in Dagestan on May 26 and 27, during a visit to the republic by Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, affected only some of the messenger's users in the republic, and on May 28, access to the messenger from Dagestan was again blocked.