EU Imposes Sanctions on VK and Messenger Max

The European Union has added the company VK and the developer of the messenger Max, Communication Platform JSC, to its sanctions list. VK manages the social network "VKontakte" and several applications. Personal sanctions have been imposed against CEO Elena Bagudina. The justification for the decision states that the Max messenger was developed under the control of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation and is mandatory for installation on devices sold in Russia. Max has tools for espionage, including communication monitoring, data collection on other applications, and geolocation tracking. The rollout of Max was accompanied by the blocking of alternative messengers such as WhatsApp and Telegram. The EU noted that VK collaborates with the Kremlin by providing data on users who criticized the war against Ukraine.