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Privacy Wireless Networking Government Hardware News

Russia To Require Registration For Wi-Fi Use 155

Posted by timothy from the Rossvyazokhrankultura-is-the-short-version dept.
Oleg.salenko points out a ComputerWorld story with some bad news for Russia's wireless users, which starts out "Business travelers to Russia might want to keep their laptops and iPhones well-concealed — not from muggers, necessarily, but from the country's recently formed regulatory super-agency, Rossvyazokhrankultura (short for the Russian Mass Media, Communications and Cultural Protection Service)... Rossvyazokhrankultura's interpretation of current law holds that users must register any electronics that use the frequency involved in Wi-Fi communications, said Vladimir Karpov, the deputy director of the agency's communications monitoring division, according to an English commentary provided by website The Other Russia."
It gets worse: "Aside from public hotspots, the registration requirement also applies to home networks, laptops, smart phones and Wi-Fi-enabled PDAs, Karpov reportedly said. Registration only permits use by the owner. Registration for personal devices is said to take 10 days, but registering a hotspot — including a home network — is more complicated, involving a set of documents and technological certifications akin to putting in a cell tower."

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Russia To Require Registration For Wi-Fi Use More

Russia To Require Registration For Wi-Fi Use

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  • And... (Score:5, Funny)

    by CSMatt ( 1175471 ) on Sunday April 20, 2008 @10:10PM (#23138584)
    Cue the Soviet Russia jokes in 3,2,1...

  • muggers (Score:5, Insightful)

    by boguslinks ( 1117203 ) on Sunday April 20, 2008 @10:10PM (#23138590)
    Business travelers to Russia might want to keep their laptops and iPhones well-concealed -- not from muggers,necessarily,

    I'd recommend concealing them from the muggers too.

    • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

      by MobyDisk ( 75490 )
      No need. The muggers would need to register the device 10 days before they can steal it. So just keep your business trips limited to 9 days.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by HardCase ( 14757 )
      ...users must register any electronics that use the frequency involved in Wi-Fi communications...

      Extrapolating from the summary, does that include microwave ovens, too?

  • I got one! (Score:5, Funny)

    by PhearoX ( 1187921 ) on Sunday April 20, 2008 @10:12PM (#23138598)
    In Soviet Russia, WiFi registers you!

  • WiFi devices (Score:3, Interesting)

    by NoobixCube ( 1133473 ) on Sunday April 20, 2008 @10:15PM (#23138616) Journal
    Looks like everyone who doesn't register their Nintendo DS is going to be a dangerous criminal! :O
  • There's electronic devices these days that don't have wifi built in?

  • Bluetooth too? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by LBt1st ( 709520 ) on Sunday April 20, 2008 @10:22PM (#23138636)
    Doesn't Bluetooth use the same frequency range as Wifi?

    • Re: (Score:1, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      Yes, Bluetooth also uses this spectrum. In fact, so does your microwave oven. The 2.4 GHz spectrum is unregulated (probably because of microwave noise sources), so you have cordless phones that interfere with 802.11 devices that drop out when you nuke some popcorn.

      The official that came up with this idea probably doesn't have much of a technical background...

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by enoz ( 1181117 )
        Well then as well as registering their laptops and iphones they will also have to register their microwave ovens, security cameras, Bluetooth devices and (in some countries) Amateur radio, video senders, cordless phones and baby monitors. These devices all "use the frequency involved in Wi-Fi communications". (source: wifi pollution [wikipedia.org])

  • How long before.. (Score:4, Insightful)

    by andy1307 ( 656570 ) on Sunday April 20, 2008 @10:23PM (#23138644)
    How long before some idiot tells us this is no different from what we have in the US?

    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Max Littlemore ( 1001285 )

      I'm not going to say it's no different, but speaking as someone who is neither American or Russian, I see having to hand my laptop over to a bunch of oafs in the airport so they can go through it as more invasive than being required to register my wifi adapter. But maybe that's just me.

      Yeah, you just keep telling yourself you live in the land of the free if that's what makes you feel good.

    • Re:How long before.. (Score:5, Funny)

      by TubeSteak ( 669689 ) on Sunday April 20, 2008 @11:24PM (#23138948) Journal

      How long before some idiot tells us this is no different from what we have in the US?
      This is no different from what we have in the U.S.

      /It took one hour
      • It's different in that we have sections of spectrum reserved for open use, but manufacturers of devices that use those bandwith chunks must register their devices and meet certain standards of interference. So, yes, all devices are in fact registered, but not an an individual basis- and why should they be? If my device is misbehaving, is it my fault or the vendor's? Overwhelmingly, the problem is likely to be the result of inadvertent damage (lightning, ESD, etc), defect, or design induced failure (poor par

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by pembo13 ( 770295 )
      A bit defensive aren't we

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Yvanhoe ( 564877 )
      This is no different from where you are heading in the US.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by CODiNE ( 27417 )
      How long before some idiot in government makes it true?
    • That only happens when we talk about China.
  • I wonder how long it is before this could be used as a pretext for someone to be arrested and interrogated. Seems like a very easy way of putting a large amount of people into a position where they are "breaking" the allowing the government to "legally" do stuff that otherwise might be very nasty.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by mrmeval ( 662166 )
      Cue the Ayn Rand jokes!

    • I wonder how long it is before this could be used as a pretext for someone to be arrested and interrogated. Seems like a very easy way of putting a large amount of people into a position where they are "breaking" the allowing the government to "legally" do stuff that otherwise might be very nasty.
      dude, it's russia. of course shit like that will happen!

  • russian (Score:5, Insightful)

    by demiurgie ( 911355 ) on Sunday April 20, 2008 @10:51PM (#23138800)
    Almost fake story.
    1. It's not required for end-user to register his wifi enabled devices.
    2. Short range Wifi hotspots must be registered if you allow access to a third party (10 days and approx. 1000 rub for registration)
    3. "a set of documents and technological certification" required for ISPs (if you sell wifi access for profit) and for wavelength not in a/b/g range

    • Re:russian (Score:4, Insightful)

      by enoz ( 1181117 ) on Sunday April 20, 2008 @11:29PM (#23138972)
      That sounds much too logical for a bureaucrat to have come up with.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by jimicus ( 737525 )

        That sounds much too logical for a bureaucrat to have come up with.
        Indeed.

        Wild guess - not based on any knowledge of Russian politics, you understand, but based on a cynical view of most governments - it was dreamt up by a network operator which wants to establish/maintain a monopoly and they "discussed" the matter with the appropriate parties.
    • If this is true, do we mark the article as a troll then? The list that you gave doesn't sound too unreasonable. Certainly not as crazy as the article describes it.
    • Dear demiurgie, You are ruining 'feel good about themselves' mood for our users, which they get by reading completely misinterpreted 'news' about other countries that makes them look at their own and say 'oh, at least it is not THAT bad here!'. Nobody cares whether what it is actually true or not. Regards, happy slashdotian...

  • They're afraid (Score:5, Funny)

    by zymano ( 581466 ) on Sunday April 20, 2008 @11:00PM (#23138832)
    Afraid that someone in Russia might use the internet for legitimate reasons instead of for crime.
  • To ensure your wifi router provides a "fair" "net-neutral" access. Hey, it's not *your* wifi router, we live in a society don't we ? Yeah yeah, flamebait, go ahead... but it sickens me no one sees how it's the same thing.
    • Wait, what? This isn't happening in the US. All you have done is created a scenario where it might possibly happen, that doesn't mean it will. Right now the government of Sudan is killing it's own citizens. I could make up a scenario where that happens in the US as well.

      This is happening in Russia, ok? Not the US. You seem to be thinking that the US is on it's way to some sort of totalitarian government. It's not. Russia IS on it's way to some totalitarian government, and it's obvious to everyone w

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by mi ( 197448 )

        This isn't happening in the US.

        It is. Search Slashdot (or anywhere else) for "net neutrality". Various activists are eager to force their own understanding of "fairness" and "neutrality" on the ISPs.

        • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

          by roto3 ( 1160113 )

          There's a difference between ISPs, whom you are paying for access/bandwidth, and private Wi-Fi networks. The GP implies that people will be forced to open up their private networks, which is not the case and has nothing to do with network neutrality.

          • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

            by Arthur B. ( 806360 )
            Most router are private property, be they owned by a corporation or an individual.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by mi ( 197448 )

            There's a difference between ISPs, whom you are paying for access/bandwidth, and private Wi-Fi networks.

            There is not. The hardware is privately owned, and who is paying whom for what is nobody else's business.

            The GP implies that people will be forced to open up their private networks, which is not the case and has nothing to do with network neutrality.

            Yes, yes, everybody wants the rules and regulations to apply to others — not themselves... Landlords can't discriminate on race, but I don't want to

  • There's a problem when ... (Score:4, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 20, 2008 @11:19PM (#23138922)
    There's a problem when a word like Rossvyazokhrankultura is considered *short* for something. What happened to NAMBLA?

    • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

      by Petersson ( 636253 )
      There's a problem when a word like Rossvyazokhrankultura is considered *short* for something

      It is common Russian way to create shorts. It's easier to say it when you're drunk (also common in Russia) then to spell something in Russian alphabet. Just like 'Gosgortechnadzor' or 'Khosrasschiot'.
  • Russia has so much potential, but it always slips back into authoritarian ways.  Must be the weather or something.

    • Re:It's so sad... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by tftp ( 111690 ) on Monday April 21, 2008 @12:38AM (#23139252) Homepage
      If you look at history you will see that Russia's potential is most effectively realized under authoritarian governments (Czars, Stalin, Brezhnev) and mostly wasted under "democratic" rulers (Gorbachev, Yeltsin.)

      Must be the weather or something.

      It's not the weather. It's russians. Given the choice they don't work. Unlike americans, russians are not chasing the golden calf, preferring instead to have good time. Nothing gets done this way.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by emj ( 15659 )
        Either you are a Russian or a Racist. Maybe you're even R&R..

      • Brezhnev (Score:2, Insightful)

        by Per Abrahamsen ( 1397 )

        If you look at history you will see that Russia's potential is most effectively realized under authoritarian governments (Czars, Stalin, Brezhnev) and mostly wasted under "democratic" rulers (Gorbachev, Yeltsin.)

        Russia was in one long decline under Brezhnev. And only a few of the Czars accomplished anything, the last one was a disaster.

        It's not the weather. It's russians. Given the choice they don't work. Unlike americans, russians are not chasing the golden calf, preferring instead to have good time. Nothing gets done this way.

        Russians know that good times are only a temporary abnormality, so they might as well enjoy it as long as it lasts.

        Also, hard work is not the way ahead in society in Russia, all you accomplish is to make some gangster or bureaucrat (in Russia, they are mostly the same) happy. So either you become a gangster/bureaucrat, or you work as little as possible and spend what you have o

        • I had to work with Russians...Well Russian Speaking Ukrainians to be precise.

          The only thing I noticed that may work with your clichés is their subtile saccarstic humour.

          Sure the rule of law isn't perfect nor democracy. Bribes exist too (I met a pharmaceutical firm sales rep who had to pay bribes in hospitals for her products). But the situation isn't that far from Bulgaria who just joined the EU.

          They are hard workers, I witnessed it...And also pretty good at engineering challenges (I witn

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by tftp ( 111690 )
            One comment to your observations. If you talk about people who immigrated into your country to start a new life then you are comparing apples to oranges. These people are far more motivated, and more hard-working than the rest, who remained in their native country because of many reasons. I don't want to paint those who remain with too wide a brush, but truth is that many of those who remain do so in part because they are plain lazy, or scared, or not qualified for a foreign job that would be better than wh

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by tftp ( 111690 )
          Also, hard work is not the way ahead in society in Russia, all you accomplish is to make some gangster or bureaucrat (in Russia, they are mostly the same) happy. So either you become a gangster/bureaucrat, or you work as little as possible and spend what you have on vodka, so there is nothing to steal.

          This is very true. But there is a deeper reason why people in Russia take it easy (one of popular expressions is "work is not a wolf, it won't run away into the forest".) Russians perceive the purpose of lif

    • Well actually, nearly every government in the world has that problem, including the USA and of course my country, Singapore. I think it's something about the way people get complacent over time. When you don't have to fight for your rights, they erode away.

  • Rossvyazokhrankultura (short for the Russian Mass Media, Communications and Cultural Protection Service)
    That's the short ? Huhu.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by mpiktas ( 740253 )
      That is the way of shortening in russia. Instead of taking only the first letter, they take first syllables. Godawful stuff. Here you have Ross short for Rossia, vyaz - I cannot decipher, okhran - it is short probably for okhranitelnyj (the one who protects), kultura - whole word culture.

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Romwell ( 873455 )
        Here: Ros = Rossiya (Russia); Svyaz = ommunications; and the wholse mumblejumble stands for "Russian Mass Media, Communications and Cultural Legacy Protection Service"=Rossvyazohrankultura
      • Actually Ros for Rossia, svyaz for svyaz---communication.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by 21mhz ( 443080 )
        You got it almost right, only Ros is for Rossiya, and svyaz is for communication.
        Personally I find this abbreviation still too unwieldy. As is the idea that one agency would regulate communications and protect cultural matters. But this is usual bureaucratic power games in Russia.
  • This is not true. Read: Translate the following site:http://www.rsoc.ru/main/about/858/887.shtml?id_news=628
  • Oh Noes! The pesky Russians have outdone us again! Quick, grab some more tax money and set up yet another government department to issue licenses for WIFI! No, I haven't a clue what it is either, just do it! And make those biometric things compulsory with registration while you are at it. And DNA.
  • In Soviet Russia, Socialism controls YOU! er...wait. amidoinitright?
  • As for those who have somewhat exotic wireless hardware? I could only think of saying the Russian equivalent of "field day".

    Something says that they won't look kindly on Lightweight AP+Controller setups.

  • That's a hoax, and has been known to be for days (Score:3, Informative)

    by AndyElf ( 23331 ) on Monday April 21, 2008 @04:13AM (#23140042) Homepage
    That's a hoax, and has been known to be for a few days already... http://www.iphones.ru/iNotes/2922/ [iphones.ru]

  • False alarm. (Score:2, Informative)

    by kirillart ( 1111591 )
    Here google translation of response from Rossvyazokhrankultura website: http://www.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.rsoc.ru%2Fmain%2Fabout%2F858%2F887.shtml%3Fid_news%3D628&langpair=ru%7Cen&hl=en&ie=UTF8 [google.com] In short: 1. You have to register only if you provide internet access for money. . 2. End-user Wi-fi equipment is excluded from list of telecommunication equipment required to register.
  • Damn I thought Rossvyazokhrankultura was a good random string of characters....there goes my password.

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