Data on the Russian internet should belong to the Kremlin, the CEO of one of Russia's top tech firms has claimed.
Natalya Kasperskaya, CEO of data protection company InfoWatch, said that state ownership of data such as search queries, photographs, and geo-location would stop similar information falling into the hands of foreign companies. Such companies could easily find out the political preferences or personal data of Russian citizens, she said in an interview with the TASS news agency.
"I believe that data should be owned by the state, because users have already sent it into the digital sphere," Kasperskaya said. "Everything they've written no longer belongs to them when it flows onto the Internet."
While the Kremlin should try to "drive" personal data towards Russia, the country's current law forcing companies to store data in Russia could eventually lead to a "battle with Google and Facebook," she warned.
Russian communications watchdog Roskomnadzor recently blocked social networking site Linkedin after a court found that it had not complied with Russia's new law on personal data. The regulation requires all personal data of Russian citizens to be stored in Russian territory.
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