FSB has expanded the list of information prohibited for disclosure

You can now be persecuted for assessing the military-political situation, talking about the moral climate in the troops, disclosing personal data about the military and their families. And also for any criticism of Roskosmos.

Julia Suntsova

Order No. 547 dated November 04, 2022, registered with the Ministry of Justice on November 17, 2022, “On approval of the List of information in the field of military, military-technical activities in the Russian Federation, which, upon receipt by foreign sources, can be used against the security of the Russian Federation”, appeared on the official portal legal acts of Russia pravo.gov.ru.

The document updates and supplements last year's similar order of the department. The difference is that the previous order in the preamble referred to No. 272-FZ of December 28, 2012. "On measures of influence on persons involved in violations of human rights and freedoms and citizens of the Russian Federation ", and the current one refers to No. 225-FZ of 07/14/2022. “On control over the activities of persons under foreign influence”.

New prohibited information is not even a state secret - this is emphasized in the wording of the paragraphs. In total, the document contains 60 points on 11 sheets . 22 of them relate to sensitive information in the field of military activities, the remaining 38 items - to the field of military-technical activities.

The order, signed by FSB director Alexander Bortnikov, was sent for the implementation of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, in itself it is not an amendment to the law and does not require parliamentary approval . The list comes into effect in a few days - from December 1 this year.

In a significant part of the paragraphs, the wording on information prohibited from being transferred to “foreign sources” is rather lengthy.

For example, the statement "According to some experts, the NWO may end in the fall of 2024" - calmly falls under paragraph I. 1. - "Information on the assessment and forecasts of the military-political, strategic (operational) situation."

News like this “December 25-26, 2022. in St. Petersburg, planned inclusion of an outdoor emergency warning system will be carried out” falls under paragraph I. 2 - “Information on the planning and implementation of measures for civil and territorial defense”. Under the qualification of the same item can be attributed, for example, the publication of a map of bomb shelters , and instructions for residents on collecting an "alarm suitcase".

A reminder of the fact “As you know, in the building of the General Staff of the RF Armed Forces on Znamenka for 30 years it has been planned to repair the roof, which was blown away by a hurricane in 1991” falls under paragraph I. 3 - “Information on the deployment, purpose, operation and security of military facilities, military formations and bodies.

Article title "Israel warned Russia about the consequences of using Iranian drones" - p. I. 18. - "Information on the preparation, conclusion, content, implementation, termination, suspension of international treaties and agreements."

Other paragraphs of the order classify seemingly general consumer information for distribution in the interests of "foreign intelligence":

• • Information about the passage by citizens of the Russian Federation of military service, public service in the troops, military formations and bodies -

told a foreigner or in social networks where he served in 1970 - an article.

• • Information about the mobilization, combat and mobilization training of troops and information about the needs of the troops -

asked in a chat for the wives of the mobilized in the Saratov region, in which store in the city there were cheap body armor left, or recorded a video message to the governor with complaints about uniforms and provisions at the training ground - he went to court.

• • Information on the procurement of goods for the needs of the troops and suppliers -

analyzed the state procurement of the Ministry of Defense or the National Guard - the same sad fate.

• • Information on ensuring the security of senior officials of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation -

wrote about the increase in the staff of the governor, if you please bear responsibility in accordance with the Criminal Code.

The authors of the list also referred to the prohibited information in the field of military activity:

• • information about the moral and psychological climate in the troops ,
• • personal data of military personnel and MEMBERS OF THEIR FAMILIES - in particular , addresses of residence, visits to educational and medical organizations, use of vehicles and means of communication, information about contacts and correspondence .

In addition, it is prohibited to distribute in the interests of foreign persons, for example:

- Information about the structure, armament and number of units of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, the National Guard ,

- Information on the operation and security of objects of troops, military formations ,

- Information about the methods of training military personnel ,

- Information on the progress and results of consideration of reports of crimes and preliminary investigations carried out by military investigative agencies and the FSB .

The prohibited information from Section II - on military-technical activities includes, for example:

- Information on the functioning of state systems for the protection and elimination of computer attacks on information resources of the Russian Federation and defense industry enterprises, information on public procurement of these protective systems ,

- Information on industrial cooperation between defense industry enterprises and on manufacturers' assessment of the quality of weapons, military and special equipment ,

- Information on the protection of objects subject to protection by the National Guard ,

- Information on the development of weapons, military and special equipment, the results of the implementation of targeted programs, research and development work on the creation and modernization of weapons (goodbye, exhibitions of the National Guard and the Federal Penitentiary Service at international economic forums, expositions of the Ministry of Defense in Patriot Park, technology parades on May 9?)

Exceptions for some items are information from the same categories if they relate to developments in the framework of scientific and socio-economic activities, or relate to the obligations of the Russian Federation under international agreements and treaties. And also if the information is already in the public domain , or turned out to be there in connection with the performance by authorized persons of their official duties.

Almost half of the points of the order from 34 - 60 p.p. dedicated to the protection of information about the space activities of the state corporation Roscosmos. These include, for example:

- information about the target programs of the enterprise, their provision and deadlines;

- information on the restructuring of Roscosmos organizations;

- information on the financing of research and development work by Roscosmos and the Ministry of Defense ,

- information about rockets, spacecraft and ground-based space infrastructure - from the planned operation to the disposal of their parts, including information on the introduction of space technologies in the interests of defense and national security ,

- information on the need, demand and volume of purchases from foreign manufacturers of high-tech materials, components for space technology and equipment for their production ,

- programs of international cooperation in the field of space activities,

- information on the development of space nuclear power ,

Criticizing Roskosmos is now also prohibited.

- INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROBLEMS RESTRAINTING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ENTERPRISE is also prohibited!

- State Corporation "Roscosmos" combines the performance of both civil and military tasks. I believe that it was a mistake to create the state corporation Roskosmos, and now require it to be closed, it is impossible to ensure the complete absence of information leakage if the activity is related to the performance of civilian tasks. Moreover, the tasks are dual-purpose, and it is difficult to draw a line - where is the area of responsibility of the military, and where is civilians, - says Maria Arkhipova, chairman of the Lawyers for Human Rights Association.

The new order of the FSB also causes more serious concerns among lawyers.

The list threatens with great trouble for everyone who in any capacity participates in the coverage of a special military operation or in its support, namely: the media, experts, military specialists, public organizations , volunteers, as well as the military personnel themselves and those mobilized who talk about the situation from the inside. Such a conclusion suggests itself due to the vagueness of terminology and the concepts of an order.

There is another opinion. The document is not so much about repression, but about protecting the lives of the Russian military and their families, says a source for NI who wished to remain confidential:

- The order of the FSB, let's call it conditionally - on restrictions on the coverage of the SVO means, firstly, that the information component is recognized as an important part of the course of the special operation. Secondly, there is an understanding that OSINT technology (from the English - Open source intelligence) or intelligence based on open sources allows you to receive and use against Russia both secret information and personal data of fighters. In modern conditions, this information easily forms the basis for making tactical decisions against units and is used to psychologically influence civilians and military persons, - the interlocutor comments. - Blogs, billings, names, reconciliation with other personal data, information from satellites - here are the unit numbers, and the approximate composition of weapons, and the names of commanders and soldiers. And we see everything else on the Web, and the relatives of the soldiers are much more than that - on their smartphones.

In any case, the question of confidence in the expertise that will be in these criminal cases remains open.

First of all, the FSB of Russia will determine the presence of prohibited information in the materials or conversations of the accused, since the categories of crimes such as treason, espionage, a threat to the security of the state, etc., fall under their jurisdiction. It is possible to involve the military prosecutor's office and the Investigative Committee, but the FSB will still be the conductors, the lawyers explain.

Judicial processes in such cases are mostly held behind closed doors. This means that listeners and the media will be denied access to meetings , and lawyers will give a non-disclosure agreement, and will not be able to convey to the public the position of their principals. Experts, on whose shoulders the same examinations will be placed, are also likely to be inaccessible to the public. In cases with similarly ambiguous legislation on extremism, for example, judges give a clear preference to full-time specialists from state-accredited departments and organizations. The conclusions of independent experts are attached to the materials only “for information”, but do not form the basis of sentences.

- Any person who, in the opinion of the authorities, can be in the slightest way connected with foreign citizens and foreign influence, will fall under the order. In criminal cases, the presence of information prohibited for dissemination will be determined by linguistic expertise. In administrative cases or as part of processes for recognition as foreign agents, most likely, even this will not be bothered by a report from an employee or a protocol for examining a page from a social network, says Dmitry Dzhulai, a representative of the Moscow Bar Association.

There will certainly be mistakes and deliberate abuses, as in all similar "political" cases, especially considering that the examinations for the Investigative Committee, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the FSB are carried out by their own expert institutions. Few people manage to challenge them even with reviews of independent experts, the lawyer adds.

- The issue of expertise is secondary here, since expertise is required where there are doubts about the correctness of understanding and interpretation of this list. Here, for sure, the doubts of the authorities and the courts will be minimal. There will be mistakes, of course. We take the first item on the list - on the assessment and forecasts of the development of the military-political and strategic situation - it immediately raises many questions. What is this assessment and forecasts? By whom and where should they be made? Military observers in the media, blogger Strelkov-Girkin, retired colonel of the General Staff Kvachkov or head of the Federal Penitentiary Service Kalashnikov? Or maybe the forecasts of ordinary military or professional military, university teachers, ordinary people, commentators on social networks are also suitable? From the logic of the wording and in the absence of specifics, we are preparing for the worst: anyone can get on the list, but we will soon see what the practice will be , - comments the lawyer, chairman of the Association “Lawyers for Human Rights” Maria Arkhipova.

Another question - to whom should prohibited information be transferred? A foreign source means a representative of a foreign state. These can be employees of embassies of other countries, representatives of foreign government agencies, foreign NGOs, foreign universities, and even close relatives who are citizens of foreign countries (!) .

The subject of the crime, according to Arkhipova, can be any conversation, written and oral, correspondence, publications in open sources, interviews, scientific articles, etc.