The obligation of technological communication networks owners to store traffic for three years for provision to intelligence services will impose significant costs and risks for enterprises. This information was reported by TASS with reference to the review of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) of the corresponding draft law of Minkomsvyaz (the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications).

According to the RSPP, due to the fact that technological networks are used in many industries (communications, IT, transport, power industry, mechanical engineering, scientific activities, etc.), the implementation of the law will impose significant costs on the owners of such networks and will create risks of disrupting technological processes of enterprises and reduction of the safety of these processes.

In addition, the RSPP considers it unacceptable to extend the requirements for the operators of public communications networks to the owners of technological networks, as the networks have different architectures and can use special means and technologies of communication that are required for production processes. Also, the enterprises currently do not have information systems which must be implemented to meet the requirements for storing traffic, RSPP notes.

The draft law developed by Minkomsvyaz, which amends the federal law “On communications”, implies that the owners of technological networks must store “information about the reception, transmission, delivery and (or) processing of voice data, text messages, images, sounds, video or other messages of communication services users” for three years in the territory of the Russian Federation, and provide intelligence agencies with this information if necessary.

Technological networks include communication networks developed to support the production activities of organizations and enterprises.

Original (in Russian)