Shut Down Russian Casinos or Face Restrictions, Moscow Warns Telegram

A leading Russian policymaker has warned Telegram officials that Moscow will restrict or ban the app if they fail to remove Russian-language casinos and betting groups.

Yevgeny Masharov, a member of the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation’s Commission for Public Review of Bills and Other Regulatory Acts, told the Russian news agency TASS that Telegram is failing to comply with federal anti-gambling laws.

Masharov, earlier this month, called on censors to block access to a major, Telegram bot-run, Russian-language casino platform. The policymaker said the platform has 870,000 users.

“If Telegram’s administration continues to fail to comply with Russian law, then, obviously, measures should be taken to restrict its use within the Russian Federation,” Masharov said.

The policymaker said Telegram “isn’t just about messages and calls.”

He said: “The app also hosts a range of groups that distribute illegal content. These include casinos, sports betting, and other material that violates Russian law.”

Russian Telegram Ban Coming?

Moscow has recently been advocating that citizens ditch platforms like Telegram, WhatsApp, and X. The Kremlin says the platforms are all subject to US and European Union influence.

In its place, they want to promote Max. The latter is a Russian messaging super app developed by VK, a Russian social media operator.

Under recently established Russian law, all smart devices sold in Russia must come with Max pre-installed. Moscow says it will use Max alongside government services such as payments and identity verification.

Masharov joined the chorus of Kremlin voices advocating for Max, noting that it “should be used as widely as possible” to ensure an end to the spread of chat app-based betting.

“We must educate people about Max’s benefits. These include, first and foremost, security,” Masharov said.

Censor Set to Act

In August last year, the Russian censorship agency Roskomnadzor moved to ban voice calls on Telegram and WhatsApp.

“Access to calls made using foreign messaging apps will be restored after they start complying with Russian legislation,” Roskomnadzor said at the time.

Masharov is not the only leading policymaker firing shots at Telegram. Artem Sheikin, the Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council’s Digital Economy committee, responded to reports that some Russians have struggled to upload videos to Telegram this year.

Sheikin told TASS that “measures are being consistently introduced against Telegram in Russia” due to its operators’ “refusal to comply with requirements to prevent crimes.”

Roskomnadzor has previously accused Telegram of allowing users to operate fraud, extortion, and cybercrime networks on its platform.

Last month, Masharov called on Moscow to approve new “systematic efforts to block gambling websites.”

He said the government should block unauthorized cryptocurrency transfers to stem a sharp rise in betting-related sites.