The new Iron Curtain is digital: Russia successfully simulates a disconnection from the global Internet network in several regions

Russia has been preparing for a possible Internet disconnection scenario for years. The first big step was taken in 2019, when a law was passed that, under the argument of protecting the country against a foreign blockadelaid the foundations of what we know today as “Runet”. The move quickly raised concerns, and organizations such as Human Rights Watch pointed out as a possible censorship tool.

The plan comes accompanied by a series of monumental challenges. From a technical point of view, the Internet is a global network with essential distributed infrastructure and components. One of the most sensitive elements is the Domain Name System (DNS), which is currently overseen by a dozen organizations whose root servers are located outside the nation ruled by Vladimir Putin.

Russia’s latest internet shutdown test

According to Reutersthe Russian “sovereign Internet” law establishes that disconnection simulations be carried out every year to prepare the country for a possible disconnection from the global network. These tests, however, were suspended in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Far from being left in the past, the simulations have resumed their course, and we now have information about the one carried out recently.

In early December, residents of Dagestan, one of the twenty-four republics of the Russian Federation, encountered problems accessing social networks and foreign services such as WhatsApp, YouTube and Google. Internet service providers (ISPs) indicated that the restrictions were due to a series of ongoing temporary measures. On Friday, December 6, the authorities provided details in this regard.

Roskomnadzor, the Russian Internet regulator, he said in statements to the Interfax news agency that the aforementioned interruptions were due to exercises intended to verify the safety and Runet stability in case of a disconnection from the global network. During the tests, the replacement infrastructure was evaluated, as well as systems that depend on resources located in foreign networks were identified.

The chernovik newspaper, for its part, explained that The connection problems were not only concentrated in Dagestan, but also reached other areas of the country, such as Chechnya and Ingushetia. The temporary disconnection in these regions of Russia would have also affected services such as the Telegram messaging application and the pages of the “Russian Google” Yandex. Connectivity was restored after several hours of testing.

Russian Sovereign Internet Law Establishes that telecommunications operators are obliged to install equipment controlled by state authorities at exchange points in the country and at interconnection points that cross the border. This effort is intended to block various network resources. It can also analyze traffic to block government-banned content.

If Russia one day decides to disconnect from the Internet, it will need its own Domain Name System. Current legislation, precisely, establishes the creation of its own and independent DNS. The greatest impact would come to the country’s population, who would be forced to do without Western services. Such a disconnection could not possibly be circumvented by VPN services either.

Images | White House (Flickr) | freepik | Thomas Jensen

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