Putin signed into law two sets of legislative amendments commonly referred to as the Yarovaya Law after their key author, Irina Yarovaya. According to the amendments, Internet and telecom companies are required to store communications and metadata for 6 months to 3 years. They are required to disclose them, as well as "all other information necessary," to authorities on request and without a court order. It also requires an email and messaging service providers to have cryptographic backdoors. The surveillance regulations have taken effect on 1 July 2018. Anonymity Operators of free Wi-Fi hotspots (restaurants, libraries, cafes etc.) are legally required to collect personal details of all users, identify them using passports, and store the data. All VPN software and anonymizers that do not implement Russia's internet blacklist are banned in Russia as of November 2017. "Organizers of information dissemination" such as online messenger services that allow unidentified users are banned as of January 2018. Messaging services, email and social networks that use encrypted data are required to permit the Federal Security Service (FSB) to access and read their encrypted communications without a court order starting in July 2018. References Internet in Russia Law of Russia Russia Human rights abuses in Russia