The EU Imposed Sanctions on VK

The EU imposed sanctions on VK

A document published in the EU’s official journal says that VK is the parent company of "Communication Platform," the developer of the Max messenger, whose creation was controlled by the FSB.

"According to numerous experts, the Max app has broad surveillance capabilities, can collect data on other apps installed on a phone, monitor the contact list, determine users’ location, and install autonomous updates. The rollout and promotion of the Max app by the Russian state was accompanied by repression and the blocking of other independent apps such as WhatsApp and Telegram, as well as a campaign to restrict the use of VPNs," the statement says.

In the view of EU authorities, VK cooperated with the authorities by handing over data on its users who criticized the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and also "took part in the government-imposed ban on the use of VPNs."

The developer of Max has also been added to the sanctions list.

In June, the Max messenger disappeared from the App Store, along with the main VKontakte social network app, the email apps Mail.ru, and several other VK holding apps. In addition, the Odnoklassniki social network app also became unavailable.

Apple said that Max was removed from the App Store "in accordance with sanctions compliance rules." The reasons for the removal of the other apps are unknown.

@meduzalive