Overview
- Regulators have slowed WhatsApp and tightened controls on Telegram, drawing open complaints from frontline troops who rely on it to reach families.
- Mobile internet shutdowns in major cities have stalled taxis, deliveries, and maps, with Kommersant estimating Moscow businesses lost 3–5 billion rubles in the first five days.
- Officials are steering adoption by pre-installing Max on new phones and by tying school communications to the app, with a Moscow university warning graduates they will not get diplomas without it.
- Max lacks end-to-end encryption and its terms say data is stored in Russia, which cybersecurity experts say makes state monitoring straightforward.
- State outlets laud Max and the service touts a March surge in users, while independent reporting details coercive measures, throttling, and widespread daily disruption.