MOSCOW, January 26 (RAPSI) - Over 5,500 websites containing pro-suicide information have been closed in Russia since November 2012, according to the website of the Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Protection and Welfare (Rospotrebnadzor).

From November 1, 2012 through January 25, 2015, 5,684 complaints have been lodged with Rospotrebnadzor. However, 5,532 web pages have been closed.

According to Rospotrebnadzor, information on methods to commit suicide and calls for suicide have been posted mostly on such social networks as VKontante, Mail.ru, LiveJournal and video hosting sites.

The website blacklist was started on November 1, 2012, and lists websites which contain prohibited information, such child pornography, ways of committing suicide and drug making instructions. Websites hosting this kind of information can be closed without a court decision.

A Russian law aimed at protecting children from “information harmful to their health and development,” which became effective in September 2012, stipulates that an automated register of domain names should be kept for purposes of identifying websites that contain prohibited information, in particular, child pornography, ways of committing suicide, and instruction on making drugs.