The Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology, and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor) disclosed that there has been a significant increase in fraudulent international calls targeting Russian citizens, primarily originating from Ukraine. Blocking these international calls aims to protect clients of Russian telecommunications operators from scammers.
Roskomnadzor further stated that subscribers will have the right to decide whether to block calls from other countries or not. They will be able to permit calls only from contacts if desired.
Currently, Roskomnadzor is collaborating with mobile operators to develop this initiative, including the necessary regulatory framework. However, some experts believe that blocking all international calls may only partially solve the problem of combating fraud, as fraudsters could shift their activities to messenger apps, local virtual PBXs, and SIM boxes.
Earlier, the Minister of Digital Development, Communications, and Mass Media, Maksut Shadaev, announced plans to introduce a draft law to the State Duma prohibiting mass spam calls, including robotic calls. In April 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law establishing administrative liability for spam calls. Fines range from 20,000 rubles for individuals to 300,000 rubles or more for legal entities.
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