Vladimir Putin has signed an order barring Russian soldiers from carrying many types of electronic devices on duty or sharing information with reporters, in an apparent effort to halt a series of embarrassing leaks about Russia’s military capabilities and secret operations.
The new rules are intended to block the spread of information about troop movements and the identification of individual members of the armed forces. But they could also make it more difficult to discover abuses in the military.
Leaked data has played a prominent role in investigations relating to the Russian military, including the downing of flight MH17 by a Russian BUK missile system and the Salisbury poisonings.
Photographs taken of soldiers and military bases and then posted to social media have helped journalists identify and track suspects in the cases, as have leaked cellular and travel data.
The order bars active-duty military from carrying smartphones or other devices that can store photographs, videos, audio files or geolocations while on duty or during states of emergency.
The strict rules have been entered into the armed forces’ disciplinary code.
The rules also bar members of the military from posting or sharing information with reporters that can reveal information about members of the military and their families, including “information that allows others to determine the location of these persons during a certain period”.
Photographs on social media and leaked online records played a key role in investigations into a secret military unit accused of carrying out assassinations in Europe. A New York Times investigation series that identified the unit was awarded the Pulitzer prize this week.
Reports confirming a deadly fire onboard a secret military submarine last year relied on leaked photographs of those killed in the tragedy.
The new rules bear similarities to a law barring soldiers’ use of smartphones, passed by Russia’s parliament in 2019, but appears to focus more on keeping information away from journalists. Last year’s law was targeted at keeping data away from foreign intelligence services, officials said.
Social media accounts have been used in a number of cases to confirm casualties among members of Russian armed forces in east Ukraine and Syria.
Journalists have used photographs from social media to confirm several reports of hazing among military conscripts.
