Russia imposes fine on Google yet again for not deleting prohibited content

Google was fined  3 million roubles by a court in Moscow on Monday following the tech giant’s inability to delete content that had been deemed illegal. Google and Russia have not been on the best of terms in recent terms with a wider dispute between the two.

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In October, the country had threatened the tech giant with a fine which would amount to a percentage of the company’s annual Russian turnover for failing to ban deleted content on its search engine and YouTube. This made waves because it was Moscow’s strongest stand yet against a foreign tech firm.

Last month, Google said that the company had paid over 32 million roubles in fines. The tech company was fined a sum equivalent to 162,000 euros by a Russian court in August for failing to delete ‘prohibited content’.

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Russia has been bearing down on  US tech giants since the beginning of this year by imposing several small fines. Roskomnadzor, the state communications regulator, has even slowed down the speed of Twitter since March.

They told Reuters that the restrictions placed on mobile devices will not be lifted until and unless illegal content on the social media platform is completely removed.

On the other hand, several people have been critical of the government’s moves, complaining about restrictions on the freedom of expression on the Internet.

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Facebook and TikTok have also had to bear the brunt of Russia’s new policy and all tech giants have been told to block or remove  content that is classified as illegal in Russia. This includes calls for prohibited demonstrations.

In mid-September YouTube was forced to delete a protest election video by those who opposed the Kremlin.