Russia: Tagansky District Court fined Signal Messenger RUB 600'000 over failure to meet obligations as an instant messaging service provider

On 9 June 2025, the Magistrate’s Court of Judicial District No. 422 in the Tagansky District of Moscow imposed an administrative fine of RUB 600,000 on Signal Messenger, LLC for repeated failure to comply with its obligations as an organiser of information dissemination on the Internet. The court found the company guilty under Article 13.31(1.1) of the Russian Code of Administrative Offences. Signal had previously been sanctioned under Article 13.31(1) for failing to notify the authorised federal authority about launching services that process electronic messages, as required by Federal Law No. 149-FZ On Information, Information Technologies and Protection of Information. The company received a formal request from the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor), but did not fulfil this obligation.