WhatsApp is to be banned and replaced with Max, which incorporates permanent snooping tech and will be installed on all digital devices sold in Russia

cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/4244142

Archived version

At first glance, Max looks harmless enough. An online app, its anodyne blue and white logo gives no indication of its origins, or its sinister purpose.

Yet this seemingly innocuous messaging service is set to become an important tool in President Putin’s attempt to impose total control over the online lives of ordinary Russians.

The app, which was test-launched in March, was developed on Putin’s orders and provides online messaging, video calls, mobile payments, social networking and access to government services. It was developed by the Kremlin-controlled company VK. Under a new law, it will be installed on every digital device that is sold in Russia from September 1.

Critics have described it as a “spy program” that installs snooping software on a user’s smartphone that remains in place even after the app is removed. It is being seen as Russia’s equivalent to China’s WeChat app, which Beijing uses for online surveillance and censorship.

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