The Saratov Regional Court оставил в силе решение о блокировке сайта The Tor Project и удалении браузера Tor из магазина Google Play.
According to prosecutors citing Roskomnadzor, the Tor browser is an “illegal technology for disseminating information.”
Representing The Tor Project’s interests during the proceedings, the Roskomsvoboda lawyer Ekaterina Abashina, заявила, that the charges were presented superficially.
“No one even examined or studied the application. The decision is based on a mischaracterisation of terms,” she noted.
Abashina added that the Information Law does not provide for banning any technologies; such a blockade is carried out extrajudicially. However, in the case of Tor, no one initiated or followed this procedure.
In December 2021, reports began to surface of the Tor blockade in Russia. The formal basis for restricting access was the Saratov District Court’s 2017 decision.
Lawyers from Roskomsvoboda appealed the blocking. In May 2022, the appellate court overturned the Saratov court’s decision. However, the case was then sent for a new hearing.
On 15 July, the Tor Project team introduced an updated version of the browser, designed to circumvent blocks.
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