Search penalty: The State Duma Committee approved amendments to the Administrative Offenses Code

      A new article may appear in Russia's Code of Administrative Offenses—13.53 "Searching for and Accessing Obviously Extremist Materials." Amendments to the bill have been approved by the State Duma Committee on State Construction and Legislation for the second reading.

      According to the project, the fine for citizens intentionally searching for prohibited content may range from 3,000 to 5,000 rubles. It is also proposed to supplement Article 14.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses with a provision on fines for advertising VPN services* that provide access to resources blocked in the Russian Federation. The administrative penalty for citizens is proposed to be from 50,000 to 80,000 rubles.

      Additionally, it is planned to introduce a new article 13.52 of the Code of Administrative Offenses, which would stipulate responsibility for VPN service owners* if they do not cooperate with Roskomnadzor in the established manner.

      Ekaterina Mizulina, head of the Safe Internet League, expressed concern over some of the wording, noting that if the bill is adopted in its current form, its practical application could cause difficulties.

      "If a schoolboy sees a banned symbol online or accidentally enters the word 'VPN*' into a search, will he become an offender? It is necessary to clearly distinguish intent from accidental access," she stated on her Telegram channel.

      Mizulina also drew attention to the fact that the Federal List of Extremist Materials contains over 5,400 entries, including images, texts, and videos. In her opinion, this could complicate law enforcement and create the risk of holding citizens accountable who lack specialized knowledge.

      Furthermore, the head of the League warned that the proposed wording could also affect the activities of human rights and monitoring organizations, including those that assist law enforcement agencies in combating the spread of illegal content on the internet.