Russia Harvests Dollars, Apple, Zoom, Ookla And Google Sentenced To Paying Fines

JAKARTA - US technology giant Apple Inc. and Zoom Video Communications were fined by the government of Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, July 12 for allegedly refusing to store data on Russian citizens on Russian territory.

Moscow has been at loggerheads with Big Tech over content, censorship, data, and local representation in a simmering dispute that has erupted into full-fledged fighting since Russia sent its armed forces to Ukraine on February 24.

Apple was fined 2 million rubles (Rp 509 million), by a court in the Tagansky district. Meanwhile, Moscow also announced that Zoom and Ookla, which run internet performance tool Speedtest, were each fined 1 million rubles (IDR 254.5 million). Alphabet's Google has also been ordered to pay 60.000 rubles (IDR 15.3 million) for different breaches related to data.

Apple, Zoom, Ookla, and Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Reuters on the report.