Russia's Industry and Trade Ministry recommends enterprises cease using foreign instant messaging, videoconferencing services - media

MOSCOW. Oct 19 (Interfax) - Russia's Industry and Trade Ministry has sent a recommendation to the directors of the country's industrial enterprises to cease using foreign instant messaging and videoconferencing systems for official purposes, the Kommersant publication reported on Wednesday, citing a letter from the ministry dated October 13.

The ministry confirmed to Kommersant the sending of letters to enterprises, explaining the decision "as the requirement to comply with the government's requirements and strengthen information security measures."

Industrial enterprises are suggested to stop using such popular instant messaging and videoconferencing systems as Zoom, Skype, and WhatsApp in their work on both computers and on smartphones. Alternatively, they should use the services of Russian developers that are in the registry of domestic software.

The registry of Russian software includes 258 communication products, 74 of which have corresponding classifier codes as the main ones, as cited by Kommersant. Messaging and videoconferencing services in the registry include Yandex.Messenger and Yandex.Telemost; Sberbank-developed Jazz; TrueConf; Kontur.Talk; ICQ; and TamTam; as well as VK Messenger, included in the registry as part of VK Ecosystem solutions.