Russian Court Bans Websites Explaining How to Trade Bitcoin

A court in Russia’s Perm region has decided to block a number of
websites describing how to exchange cryptocurrency for fiat cash.
Local prosecutors claim the dissemination of this type of
information is against the law in Russia as it may facilitate the
laundering of illicit funds.

Kungur City Court Blocks Crypto-Related
Sites
The Kungur City Court in the Russian Perm Krai region has upheld a
request filed by the Beryozovsky District Prosecutor’s Office to
take down several internet sites detailing various methods of
cashing out bitcoin. The prosecutors who discovered the crypto
platforms insist the publishing of such content violates Russian
legislation on combating the legalization of crime proceeds.

“It was established that information on methods of cashing out
the Bitcoin cryptocurrency was freely available for viewing and
using on certain Internet resources,” a press release explained,
further noting:

Taking into account that the legislation considers the exchange
of virtual currencies as a potential involvement in dubious
transactions, the prosecutor sent an administrative statement of
claim to the court demanding to restrict access to this
information.

The number of the affected websites as well as their domain
names were not disclosed, but Forklog quoted the prosecutor’s
office saying that five such requests have been submitted since the
beginning of the year. One of the claims, according to the
publication, concerns a Youtube video describing ways of exchanging
bitcoin for Russian rubles.

Russia’s Crackdown on Bitcoin Websites
Continues
Access to the websites subject to Kungur City Court’s latest
decision will be restricted after the ruling enters into force, the
Perm Prosecutor’s Office said without providing any more details.
The banned sites will join a growing number of crypto-related
outlets that have been taken down by Russian authorities in the
past few years.

Last August, the Russian media watchdog Roskomnadzor blocked a
crypto exchange monitoring website, Bestchange.ru, the third time
the platform went offline as Bitcoin.com News reported. The popular
site helps Russian-speaking users to find the best crypto-fiat
exchange rates available. Roskomnadzor’s attempts to blacklist the
aggregator started back in 2017.

In March 2020, the agency added five crypto websites to its
register of banned internet sources. The platforms were offering
various services, from crypto exchange to mobile top-ups with
bitcoin, and one of them was an information portal. The forum
section of the crypto news outlet Bits.media was also targeted.

Crypto website operators have in the past successfully
challenged some of these censorship measures in Russian courts. In
March 2018, the Saint Petersburg City Court struck down a ban on 40
websites publishing information and offering services related to
cryptocurrencies. In April of that year, the Supreme Court of the
Russian Federation overturned a decision to block the
Bitcoininfo.ru portal. In May 2019, Roskomnadzor was forced to
remove Bestchange.ru from its blacklist, after prosecutors gave up
efforts to block the website.

A court in Russia’s Perm region has decided to block a number of
websites describing how to exchange cryptocurrency for fiat cash.
Local prosecutors claim the dissemination of this type of
information is against the law in Russia as it may facilitate the
laundering of illicit funds.

Kungur City Court Blocks Crypto-Related
Sites
The Kungur City Court in the Russian Perm Krai region has upheld a
request filed by the Beryozovsky District Prosecutor’s Office to
take down several internet sites detailing various methods of
cashing out bitcoin. The prosecutors who discovered the crypto
platforms insist the publishing of such content violates Russian
legislation on combating the legalization of crime proceeds.

“It was established that information on methods of cashing out
the Bitcoin cryptocurrency was freely available for viewing and
using on certain Internet resources,” a press release explained,
further noting:

Taking into account that the legislation considers the exchange
of virtual currencies as a potential involvement in dubious
transactions, the prosecutor sent an administrative statement of
claim to the court demanding to restrict access to this
information.

The number of the affected websites as well as their domain
names were not disclosed, but Forklog quoted the prosecutor’s
office saying that five such requests have been submitted since the
beginning of the year. One of the claims, according to the
publication, concerns a Youtube video describing ways of exchanging
bitcoin for Russian rubles.

Russia’s Crackdown on Bitcoin Websites
Continues
Access to the websites subject to Kungur City Court’s latest
decision will be restricted after the ruling enters into force, the
Perm Prosecutor’s Office said without providing any more details.
The banned sites will join a growing number of crypto-related
outlets that have been taken down by Russian authorities in the
past few years.

Last August, the Russian media watchdog Roskomnadzor blocked a
crypto exchange monitoring website, Bestchange.ru, the third time
the platform went offline as Bitcoin.com News reported. The popular
site helps Russian-speaking users to find the best crypto-fiat
exchange rates available. Roskomnadzor’s attempts to blacklist the
aggregator started back in 2017.

In March 2020, the agency added five crypto websites to its
register of banned internet sources. The platforms were offering
various services, from crypto exchange to mobile top-ups with
bitcoin, and one of them was an information portal. The forum
section of the crypto news outlet Bits.media was also targeted.

Crypto website operators have in the past successfully
challenged some of these censorship measures in Russian courts. In
March 2018, the Saint Petersburg City Court struck down a ban on 40
websites publishing information and offering services related to
cryptocurrencies. In April of that year, the Supreme Court of the
Russian Federation overturned a decision to block the
Bitcoininfo.ru portal. In May 2019, Roskomnadzor was forced to
remove Bestchange.ru from its blacklist, after prosecutors gave up
efforts to block the website.