The Russian government confirmed that a series to tests to disconnect its Internet from the rest of the world were successful.
Russia's deputy communications minister Alexei Sokolov said at a press conference that the tests proved the country is ready to respond to possible threats, according to local news agencies.
The experiment had been planned for some time but was postponed until the Sovereign Internet bill was passed that gives the government the right to disconnect from the World Wide Web in case of a national emergency or foreign attack.
Online, people speculated over why Russia would go to such lengths to cut itself off from the web.
That if Russian is under a cyber attack from A foreign nation they can kill the country’s internet from connecting to the out side world. Plus making it easier for the government to spy on its citizens because now all traffic would have to go through specific channels
— Flake (@iCodeMC) December 24, 2019
Although the government didn't reveal technical details, it stated that it tested several simulations including a scenario of a hostile cyber attack from a foreign country, according to ZDNet.
The new bill and the cyber shut down capabilities together mean that Russia can effectively run the world's largest intranet network with a push of a button, completely detached from the external web.
Even though the move is being described as a protective measure, there are fears that it could be exploited as a form of state surveillance on citizens or to censor mass dissent.
Rossiya Sputnik Wikileaks
— M?? Clause (@Loveon999) December 23, 2019
"While Beijing has created what has become known as the Great Firewall of China to filter content and limit access to foreign websites, activists and analysts are divided if Russia has the resources to implement such a system."https://t.co/EBOpesaVfC
As technology levels borders, nation-states digitally reinstate them.
— Because Culture ? (@BecauseCulture) December 21, 2019
But with much cyber hostility and privacy concerns between the US and Russia, many view this as a legitimate defense strategy.
Not cut off but protect from destructive interference coming from its enemies. Every country should run a parallel independent internet, because things are about to turn real ugly pretty soon...
— j2lm4u (@j2lm4u) December 21, 2019
That’s one way to cut off the flow of Fake News.
— Your Basic Clown (@YourBasicClown) December 21, 2019
?
Meanwhile the official Kremlin news Twitter account assured the public that Russia's intentions were limited to security.
The internet: Russia will not restrict internet freedom. The sovereign internet law aims to prevent a potential cut-off from the global web
— President of Russia (@KremlinRussia_E) December 19, 2019
