Russia Urges Users to Install Domestic SSL Certificates as Foreign Browsers Block Sites
Russia's Ministry of Digital Development is recommending users install locally produced SSL certificates to maintain access to websites, following the revocation of certificates by global authorities. The move affects users of foreign browsers like Chrome and Safari.
Russia's Ministry of Digital Development is urging internet users to install domestically produced SSL certificates so that Russian websites continue to load properly in foreign web browsers. The ministry stated that the measure is safe and will not affect device functionality, according to the business daily RBC.
To maintain secure access to Russian websites, online stores, banks, marketplaces, and other resources, the ministry recommends installing its security certificates. Yandex Browser already has the domestic security certificate built-in. Users can find the certificates along with installation instructions on the Gosuslugi state services portal.
People using foreign browsers such as Chrome, Safari, or Edge are now unable to access some Russian websites, as global certificate authorities continue revoking certificates from Russian companies. They encounter connection errors or warnings that the site is not secure.
In mid-June, it became known that GlobalSign, a Japanese company that issues digital security certificates, had started forcibly revoking certificates from Russian firms. Sources told RBC that this move threatened 15,000 to 20,000 second-level domains. Days later, GlobalSign added more than 300 domains belonging to 44 companies to its revocation list, including websites operated by Rosneft, Gazprombank, Alrosa, ANO Dialog, VEB.RF, and others.
Two months earlier, GlobalSign revoked the certificate of Telega, an unofficial Telegram client. Telega was later removed from the App Store, and in late June, its developers announced they were shutting down the project.
