Apple has removed all VK apps from the App Store – and drawn the wrath of Russian authorities. Will your iPhone now turn into a brick? And is it even possible to “ban Apple” in Russia?

On June 25, Apple removed all Russian company VK’s apps from its App Store. in comments The American company explained this move to the Russian service of the BBC with the sanctions, as it ultimately complies with the laws of “the jurisdictions in which it operates.” Meanwhile, Apple did not specify what penalties would be discussed in a particular case.

The company already gave exactly the same answer in early June, when it suddenly removed Max messenger, part of the VK ecosystem, from the App Store.

Ministry of Digital Development Shoot it Such decisions regarding Russian acquisition were “politically motivated” and described them as “a manifestation of unfair competition.” The agency also accused Apple of non-compliance with Russian legislation and asked the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) to immediately respond to these violations.

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No, from everywhere. Therefore, users will not be able to install it by changing the region or… Additional accountlinked to another country. As is usually the case with VPNs that have been removed from the Russian App Store.

Already installed apps continued to work, but stopped receiving push notifications. In addition, they are not updated: their functions will gradually become outdated, and bugs and vulnerabilities cannot be corrected.

Russian banks, which previously faced a similar problem due to sanctions, Steady Their apps are for users on iPhones – but only manually and in their own offices. It is difficult to imagine that VK will follow the same path.

No, this administration does not have such powers.

Although in October 2018 FAS Suggested Amendments to the Administrative Violations Law in order to obtain the right through the court to seize the resources of companies that violated anti-monopoly legislation and did not comply with its instructions. Experts maleThis would help restrict Google’s service after Yandex complained in 2015. But the initiative was then criticized by the Ministry of Economic Development, and the draft law was not even submitted to the Duma.

As a result, the FAS is now unable to achieve blocking of Internet resources either through court or out of court. The agency can only order Apple to remove the specific violation and issue an administrative fine.

We don’t know. Much depends on the definition of the authorities’ goals. Technically, they have the ability to block Apple services in Russia. And the company itself He explained The removal of VPN apps from the App Store at the request of Roskomnadzor is precisely the desire to preserve the access of the domestic audience to its content and the App Store.

In June in specialized media back Individual reports of licensing issues via Apple ID for some users from Russia. Experts suggested that this could be explained by traffic filtering or errors in its routing. If these are targeted actions, they may be related to the expectation of fines for licensing in Russia through foreign systems (including Apple ID).

This is a difficult question. The fact is that as of March 3, 2026, according to the “Telecommunications” Law, telecom operators must

These cases, to our knowledge, have not yet been identified. But in theory, one can imagine that the FSB would demand that telecom operators disable all iPhones on their networks. Users will not be able to make calls and send SMS and will lose mobile internet. iPhones can then be connected to a Wi-Fi network only.

Telecom operators can identify all iPhones on their network using their IMEI. This is not a random number. It contains encrypted data about the device manufacturer (Apple) and even about a specific phone model.

For example, intelligence services may point to the need to ensure the safety of Russians. Back in 2023 FSB maleWhich revealed an “intelligence campaign by American intelligence agencies” that was carried out using Apple devices:

And exactly three years later – in June 2026 – the FSB male Regarding the revelation of a “large-scale campaign by foreign intelligence services” to spy on senior Russian officials through malware implanted in their phones. The criminal case was filed under the following articles:

• Unauthorized access to computer information;
• Creating, using and distributing malicious computer software.

We do not know the details of this criminal case. Therefore, it is not clear whether it is related to the 2023 announcement and whether hacked iPhones appear there.

However, disconnecting Apple devices from networks is probably only possible in some extreme circumstances: authorities are unlikely to go so far as to leave them offline tens Millions Russians at one time.