Now in Russia, even searching for 'extremist' information will be punished, Parliament passes new law

The Russian Parliament's upper house on Friday passed a bill, according to which now searching for 'extremist' declared content on the Internet will be regarded as a crime as well. The bill is being viewed as another move to further restrict government control over the Internet in Russia.

This bill says that if someone intentionally searches or browses material that is 'extremist' in nature, then he can be penalized up to around 64 US dollars (approximately Rs 5,300).

This bill was also passed by the lower house of Parliament earlier. Now it will become law after President Vladimir Putin signs it. The definition of 'extremism' in Russian law is quite broad. It also includes opposition organizations like Alexei Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation and the 'international LGBT movement'.

However, the authorities did not clarify how they would track these searches or on what basis they would decide who had deliberately searched for such content.

Government officials are claiming that ordinary internet users need not fear this law, and it will only apply to those who repeatedly try to access banned information.

Millions of people in Russia access banned sites using VPN, but the government is tightening the noose around them as well. Since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, there has been a huge increase in online censorship, arrests and media bans in Russia to suppress anti-government voices.