MOSCOW, July 21 (RAPSI) – The lower house of the Russian parliament has adopted in the third and final reading a bill prohibiting the use of technologies enabling access to blocked websites, also known as anonymizers, the State Duma informs on Friday.

The initiative proposed by a cross-party group envisages a ban on using information and telecommunication networks, as well as software, with the aim to obtain access to websites and content blocked in Russia. Providers, in order to be able to comply with the bans, are to be allowed to draw on the database of restricted sources run by Roskomnadzor, Russia’s communications watchdog.  

A failure to comply with Roskomnadzor requirements is to result in a 30-day interdict on visiting sites providing access to information resources used to circumvent the blocks. Operators of search services will be obliged to cease publishing of links to information resources blocked in Russia.