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Google closes its engineering offices in Russia

google imageWeb search giant Google is closing the doors of its engineering office in Russia after a string of changes in legislation now force tech firms to keep the data of Russian citizens in the country.

The engineering office  employs approximately 50 engineers in Moscow and each member of staff will have the option of moving with Google elsewhere.

Russia, alongside China, is known for stringent censorship laws designed to control the Internet activity of the general public and corporations. The latest set of new laws passed by governors requires tech firms to store data related to Russian citizens locally, something Google may not be willing to tolerate — and can evade by removing itself from the country.

In a statement, Google said:

“We are deeply committed to our Russian users and customers and we have a dedicated team in Russia working to support them.”

The new laws were pushed through in response to revelations pertaining to the US National Security Agency (NSA). Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden released hundreds of confidential documents to the media over the past year which documented widespread and uncontrolled bulk data collection and spying upon not only the US general public, but other nations.

Google will be joining Adobe Systems, which reportedly closed down its Russian offices earlier this year.

Via ZDNET

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Ephraim Batambuze III

Digital guy, Web developer, Tech blogger, Gadgets Reviews, Geeky dad. Email:ebatambuze@gmail.com Twitter:@batambuze WhatsApp/Telegram:+256781665128 Skype:ebatambuze
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