Tag Archives: Singapore International News

Google blocks Russian parliament YouTube channel

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Google has blocked Russia’s Duma TV YouTube channel, according to Reuters. On Saturday, the company said it had “terminated” the channel, which airs meetings of Russia’s lower house of parliament, for a violation of the platform’s terms of service.

"If we find that an account violates our Terms of Service, we take appropriate action,” a Google spokesperson told the outlet. “Our teams are closely monitoring the situation for any updates and changes." The company added it was committed to complying with sanctions imposed on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in late February.

The suspension quickly drew the ire of Russian officials, with a spokesperson for the country's foreign ministry warning YouTube had “signed its own warrant." Russia’s Roskomnadzor telecom regulator condemned the move and ordered Google to restore Duma TV’s YouTube access immediately. "The American IT company adheres to a pronounced anti-Russian position in the information war unleashed by the West against our country," the agency said.

The response from Russian authorities suggests YouTube could become the latest Western internet service to face restrictions within the country. Shortly after the war in Ukraine began on February 24th, Russia moved to block access to Twitter. In March, it then cut off Facebook and Instagram – but not WhatsApp due to the chat app's popularity among Russian citizens. It subsequently found the Meta-owned services guilty of “extremist” activity after the company said it would temporarily allow calls of violence in Ukraine and a handful of other countries.

Zelensky signs bill legalizing crypto industry in Ukraine

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Cryptocurrency will soon be a legal asset class in Ukraine, thanks to a new bill signed into law by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation tweeted today that both foreign and Ukrainian cryptocurrency exchanges are cleared to operate in the country. Crypto companies will soon be able to open accounts in Ukrainian banks as well. The world has sent an estimated $100 million in crypto donations to Ukraine since Russia’s invasion, including the Ukrainian military, aid groups, hacktivists and everyday citizens.

“The signing of this Law by the President is another important step towards bringing the crypto sector out of the shadows and launching a legal market for virtual assets in Ukraine,” wrote Ukraine's Ministry of Digital Transformation in its announcement of the law’s signing.

Cryptocurrency has technically not been illegal in Ukraine (hence the millions in donations and the nation’s status as the leading country for crypto adoption). But digital assets in Ukraine have more or less operated in a legal gray area. Neither people nor companies in Ukraine could own or trade crypto in the market, for example. A spike in crypto crime and money laundering in Ukraine and Eastern Europe in recent years led to the nation's government cracking down on the industry.

The new law sets forth a legal framework for Ukraine’s burgeoning crypto industry to exist, as well as taps the National Bank of Ukraine and its National Commission on Securities and Stock Market to serve as regulators. It also paves the way for more laws and a tax code on crypto, which, hopefully, will further legitimize the crypto industry in Ukraine. 

This website allows Westerners to talk to Russians about the war in Ukraine

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With the Kremlin restricting access to online platforms like Twitter and Instagram in recent days, people in Russia are quickly losing access to information about the war in Ukraine that doesn’t come from the government. Enter Squad303, a website created by a group of Polish programmers to help people from around the world establish a dialogue with their Russian counterparts.

Spotted by The Wall Street Journal, the website randomly generates a number or email address for you to contact. It pulls from a database that contains 20 million cellphone numbers and approximately 140 million email addresses. Since the Squad303 went online on March 6th, its creators told The Journal that individuals from around the world have sent nearly 7 million text messages and 2 million emails in Russian, along with countless images and videos from the conflict.

“Our aim was to break through Putin’s digital wall of censorship and make sure that Russian people are not totally cut off from the world and the reality of what Russia is doing in Ukraine,” a spokesperson for told the outlet.

The website is named after the Royal Air Force’s famous 303 Fighter Squadron. It was one 16 units made up of Polish airmen that flew for the RAF during World War II. The 303 played a pivotal role in the Battle of Britain, shooting down the largest number of Luftwaffe aircraft during the months-long campaign. In another historical allusion, the creators of Squad303 compared their project to Radio Free Europe, which began as a US-funded effort to broadcast news, information and analysis to Soviet satellite states during the Cold War.

Using the website, The Journal was able to talk to a 25-year-old law student from Moscow. They told the outlet they opposed the war but said they didn’t plan to protest against it for fear of retribution from the government. “Am I supposed to risk my education, my future?” the student said. “I know Putin is killing people in Ukraine, but it is not my fault, I am not killing anyone, and I am not supporting any wars.”

Even engaging in conversations like the one above is risky for Russians. Videos have recently emerged allegedly showing Russian police stopping commuters to screen the messages on their phones for signs of dissent. Visit The Journal to read more about the effort. 

Prominent editor of Russian Wikipedia pages detained in Belarus

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Authorities in Belarus have arrested and detained Mark Bernstein, one of the top editors of Russian Wikipedia, according to local publication Zerkalo. Bernstein was reportedly accused of violating the "fake news" law Russia passed in early March by editing the Wikipedia article about the invasion of Ukraine. Under the new law, anybody found guilty of what the country deems as false information about the Ukraine invasion — remember, the Kremlin calls it a "special military operation" — could be imprisoned for up to 15 years.

It was the Main Directorate for Combating Organized Crime and Corruption of Belarus (GUBOPiK) that had arrested Bernstein, The Verge reports. The publication says his social media accounts, Wikipedia handle and workplace were shared on GUBOPiK's public Telegram channel before he was taken in. A video of his arrest was also posted on the channel, along with a photo that accuses him of "distributing fake anti-Russian information." Belarus played a key role in the invasion of Ukraine by hosting Russian troops, which deployed from the country when the attacks began. 

As The Verge notes, it's unclear what exactly Bernstein is being charged with and which of his edits broke Russia's fake news law. Bernstein has over 200,000 Wikipedia edits under what's believed to be The New York Times that "[e]verything that's not propaganda is being eliminated."

YouTube is blocking Russian state media channels worldwide

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YouTube says it will now block channels linked to Russia-backed media outlets worldwide. Last week, it blocked channels from the likes of RT and Sputnik in Europe following an EU directive. The updated policy takes effect immediately, though YouTube's systems will take a little time to fully block the channels.

The service also said "denying, minimizing or trivializing well-documented violent events" is not allowed under its Community Guidelines. YouTube is taking down videos about the conflict in Ukraine that violate the rule. On Thursday, Twitter and Facebook removed posts from Russia's embassy in the UK that denied the bombing of a maternity hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine.

YouTube has also deleted more than 1,000 channels and over 15,000 videos related to Russia's invasion ok Ukraine for violating various policies, such as those on hate speech, misinformation and graphic content. Google stopped all ad sales in Russia last week and it has now paused all YouTube monetization and payments in the country.

YouTube says it may take further action in Russia as the conflict continues. In addition, it's directing users to trusted sources of news regarding the invasion.

Facebook will ‘temporarily’ allow Ukrainians to call for the death of Putin and Russian soldiers

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Facebook is changing a rule that prohibits users from calling for violence in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The change, which was first reported byReuters, allows people in Ukraine and a handful of other countries “to call for violence against Russians and Russian soldiers in the context of the Ukraine invasion.” People in Ukraine, Poland and Russia are also permitted to “call for death to Russian President Vladimir Putin or Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.”

Facebook spokesperson Andy Stone said in a statement that the company was "temporarily” allowing some posts that in the past would have been taken down under the company’s rules prohibiting inciting violence. He added that the company won’t allow “credible calls for violence against Russian civilians.” The company will also take down specific credible threats against Putin and Lukashenko, according to a memo reported by Reuters.

“As a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine we have temporarily made allowances for forms of political expression that would normally violate our rules like violent speech such as ‘death to the Russian invaders,’” Stone said. “We still won’t allow credible calls for violence against Russian civilians.”

Russia has responded to the rule changing, saying that Washington must stop the "extremist activities" of Meta, Reuters has reported. 

The change underscores just how much social media platforms are rushing to adapt their content policies amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Facebook has already taken several steps to limit the influence of Russian state media outlets and took down a network of fake accounts boosting pro-Russia propaganda. The Russian government has responded by banning Facebook.

Update 3/10/2022 2:20 AM ET: The article has been updated with Russia's response to Meta's new rule, reported by Reuters.

Google is rolling out air raid alerts on Android phones in Ukraine

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As the conflict in Ukraine continues, Google is rolling out an Android feature it hopes will help people in the country stay safe. Ukraine's government asked Google to deploy an air raid alert system on Android phones, and it worked with the company to do so. Google says the feature complements the existing air strike alerts — it's based on alerts the government is already providing to its residents.

In the latest update to a blog post in which it details the steps it's taking to help Ukraine, Google says it has now suspended most of its commercial activities in Russia. Those include ads for all entities based in Russia, Google Cloud signups, payments on most services and YouTube monetization features for Russian viewers. Free services such as YouTube, Gmail and Search are still available in Russia for the time being.

Starting today, hotel owners in countries neighboring Ukraine can note on their business profile if they offer discounted or free stays to refugees. Businesses can share details on their business profile on Search and Maps about services and aid they're offering to refugees from Ukraine.

Google is also letting NGOs in Warsaw use one of its campuses to offer legal and psychological support to refugees. It previously announced similar support for NGOs in Slovakia, Romania and Hungary, as well as a $10 million pledge toward local organizations in Poland that are aiding refugees.

Meanwhile, Google's Threat Analysis Group has detected activity from FancyBear and Ghostwriter, hacking groups believed to have ties to Russia and Belarus, respectively. The team shared details about those threats earlier this week to increase awareness among those in the security community and those who may be at risk of cyberattacks.

In addition, the company says it has complied with an EU directive to remove Russian state-funded media websites from search results in the region. It's also removing more Russian media apps from Google Play.

Facebook makes it easier for Ukrainian users to seek medical help and assistance

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Facebook has updated its Community Help section in Ukraine to add resources from local UN and Red Cross agencies. The information Facebook has added will make it easier for users to find medical help and other kinds of assistance not just in Ukraine, but also in neighboring countries. In addition, Community Help now contains the WhatsApp helpline for Ukraine's State Emergency Services to connect people with critical updates and vital services.

To make sure that people who need it can quickly access the section, Facebook is putting a link to Community Help at the top of its feeds for Ukrainain users, even if they've already left the country. The link will also appear at the top of the results for relevant searches on Facebook, as well as at the top of users' Instagram feeds. 

Facebook has updated its Emotional Health Center, as well, adding mental health tips (such as how to support children during a crisis) from the WHO and other organizations in Ukrainian, Russian and English. Users in Ukraine might also start seeing more ads connecting them to organizations providing aid, because Facebook is giving those groups access to free ad campaigns to get critical messaging out to those who need it. The World Health Organization, for instance, has put out ads promoting information on breastfeeding for displaced mothers. 

Finally, those who need to get in touch with the WHO's Health Alert helpline for mental health in Ukraine and neighboring countries can add the number +41 79 893 18 92 to their WhatsApp contacts. They simply have to message "hi" to that number to get the process started. 

Facebook made several other moves over the past couple of weeks in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The social network previously demoted Russian state media across its entire platform and took down fake accounts boosting Russian information in Ukraine shortly after the attacks started. It also enabled a "lock profile" tool for people in Ukraine, giving them a one-click solution to ensure that nobody outside their friends list can see their posts, photos and information. 

Ubisoft and Take-Two are the latest game companies to halt sales in Russia

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More major gaming companies are joining the boycott against Russia, with Ubisoft and Take-Two putting business on hold amid the country's invasion of Ukraine. On Monday, Ubisoft updated a blog post in which it expressed support for Ukraine and its team members based there to note it's pausing sales in Russia.

Take-Two, meanwhile, has stopped sales of games and ended marketing support in Russia and Belarus. The publisher also told GamesIndustry.biz it's preventing people in the two countries from installing its games. That includes Grand Theft Auto V, which is believed to be the third most-popular game in Russia behind Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Dota 2, based on monthly active users.

Since the invasion began, many notable gaming companies have withdrawn from Russia, including Activision Blizzard, Epic Games, Microsoft, EA and CD Projekt. Sony also removedGran Turismo 7 from its Russian storefront just as the game was released elsewhere, while Nintendo halted Switch eShop payments.

Other major companies have ended or limited services and sales in Russia, including Google, Netflix, TikTok, PayPal, Adobe, internet backbone provider Cogent and Meta. Samsung has stopped shipping products to the country, while Apple has suspended all sales there.

Snapchat disables ‘heatmap’ feature in Ukraine to protect public safety

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The Snap Map feature, which shows where Snaps were taken, can be pretty useful for those who want to know the hottest places to visit in an area — not so much for people trying to flee a war. That's why, as a safety precaution, Snap has temporarily disabled the "heatmap" feature for public posts in Ukraine. Typically, the Snap Map highlights places where there are tons of Snaps taken with a glowing red circle and spots where some posts were made with a blue circle. If you look at the feature in the app or on the web, you'll see that there are no longer indicators placed over Ukraine. 

Other tech companies had also disabled features that can show the movements of Ukrainians leaving the country, which is currently under attack from Russia. Google disabled live traffic data in Ukraine, including the live traffic layer for Maps, to protect the safety of locals. It also turned off user-submitted Maps placements after claims that they were being used by the Russian military to coordinate airstrikes. When it announced that it's halting all product sales in Russia, Apple said that it had disabled live traffic data in Ukraine, as well, to prevent the app from being used to target Ukraine residents.