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It is no secret that the Russian Government monitors its civilians, but this surveillance has become more and more invasive as Russia attempts to maintain its iron fist like grasp on its own residents.

By limiting information, tracking movement and harnessing all available digital data, the Russian Government strikes fear in the hearts of civilians. But how exactly does this totalitarian surveillance look like?

When walking the streets of Moscow almost every location, especially places that offer public services like banks, supermarkets and subways, are laced with advanced CCTV cameras that track the movement of each citizen.

Most, if not all, of these cameras utilize biometric technology such as facial recognition to identity every civilian, and mercilessly persecute everybody that dares to act in defiance of the government. Or maybe just look like they might.

In 2022, “Russian authorities expanded their control over people’s biometric data, including by collecting such data from banks, and using facial recognition technology to surveil and persecute activists,” Human Rights Watch reported this year.

To ensure that no protests could even be arranged by citizens, the Kremlin heavily monitors and restricts the use of the internet in the country. You best believe that even search, post and comment posted online is being tracked and documented by the Russian regime.

According to Net Freedoms, a prominent internet rights group, more than 610,000 web pages were blocked or removed by authorities in 2022 — the highest annual total in 15 years — and 779 people faced criminal charges over online comments and posts.