Discord faces block in Russia over Roskomnadzor decisions

Since September 20, Roskomnadzor has sent five new instructions to Discord regarding its work in Russia. As follows from the registration of banned sites, these decisions can become the basis for blocking the platform under the Law “On Information Technologies and Information Protection”.

The publication’s interlocutor familiar with the situation said that Discord could soon be blocked for violating Russian law. Gaming industry representatives expressed concern about a possible slowdown in service.

• On September 18, Discord experienced a technical issue. Most Russians experienced no connection issues on both the web version and the mobile app.
• A week later, Russian users again reported a malfunction in the messenger. There were problems opening the application and connecting to the Internet.

Discord is a platform that allows users to communicate via text messages, voice calls, and video conferencing. Popular among gamers as well as various communities, educational groups and corporate teams.

According to experts, the messenger has become an important platform for interaction between gaming communities and crypto projects, allowing administrators to set up different pseudonyms for different servers. Russian developers also actively use Messenger to communicate with international audiences and provide technical support, making it a substitute for corporate solutions like Slack, they emphasize.

• On March 12, 2024, Roskomnadzor included Discord in the register of social networks. Now the service must independently identify and block information prohibited in Russia published on its resource. Violation of the law faces a fine of up to 8 million rubles.
• A couple of days later, Discord began blocking said information. Users began to receive notifications about the unavailability of servers on which information with content prohibited in Russia is discussed or published.