MOSCOW, September 26 (RAPSI) – Russian communications regulator Roskomnadzor has notified Facebook, Gmail and Twitter of the need to register as “information distribution organizers,” Izvestia newspaper writes on Friday, citing the regulator’s deputy chief Maxim Ksenzov.

The amendments to the law On Information, Information Technology and Information Protection and other related laws, which are informally referred to as the law on bloggers, became effective on August 1 this year.

The law now requires individuals whose blog attracts a daily readership of more than 3,000 to take on the full responsibilities of media outlets.

The most popular personal websites will have to be registered with the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor), which will notify users of their obligation to comply with the provisions of the law on the media.

In particular, the law obliges the owners of the said personal websites and social networking pages to confirm the reliability of information, to act in accordance with election campaign rules (election silence and a ban on publishing poll results five days before voting day). They must not publish private information about other people and must indicate age limits for users.

“Roskomnadzor has notified US internet services Facebook, Gmail and Twitter of the need to register in Russia as information distribution organizers. VKontakte, Yandex and Mail.ru have already registered, and Habrahabr (a collaborative blog with elements of social network about IT) has filed for registration,” the newspaper writes, citing Ksenzov.

The US resources will be penalized if they refuse to comply with Russian law. They need to make a decision regarding the creation of personal data storage centers in Russia and the law on bloggers, Ksenzov said.