The telecom companies had no choice but to step aside as government-approved technicians installed the equipment alongside their own computer systems and servers. Russia is using the censorship technology to gain more leverage over Western internet companies in addition to other strong-arm tactics and legal intimidation. But unlike China, which has three state-run telecoms that get people online, Russia has thousands of internet providers, which makes it more difficult to censor. “A blocking system is installed at the border of every Russian internet provider,” he said. The company sells products in Belarus and Kazakhstan, countries where human rights groups have documented internet censorship.
