LETTER FROM MOSCOW

<img src="https://img.lemde.fr/2023/09/01/0/0/1920/1080/664/0/75/0/9a1b8d9_1693555863845-donos.png" srcset=" https://img.lemde.fr/2023/09/01/0/0/1920/1080/556/0/75/0/9a1b8d9_1693555863845-donos.png 556w, https://img.lemde.fr/2023/09/01/0/0/1920/1080/600/0/75/0/9a1b8d9_1693555863845-donos.png 600w, https://img.lemde.fr/2023/09/01/0/0/1920/1080/664/0/75/0/9a1b8d9_1693555863845-donos.png 664w, https://img.lemde.fr/2023/09/01/0/0/1920/1080/700/0/75/0/9a1b8d9_1693555863845-donos.png 700w, https://img.lemde.fr/2023/09/01/0/0/1920/1080/800/0/75/0/9a1b8d9_1693555863845-donos.png 800w" sizes="(min-width: 1024px) 556px, 100vw" alt="Excerpt from the video presentation of the " my="" denunciation"="" parody="" application."="" width="100%" height="auto">

For urban Russians, the name evokes the modern, efficient applications that have made relations with the government and local authorities smoother in recent years: "My Neighborhood" "My Road" and "My Taxes" all exist nationally.

In fact, "My Denunciation" has all the right hallmarks: Bright colors, modern design, and photographs of smiling faces. It also has an introductory text read in an enthusiastic voice. "Who among us doesn't like to complain about a neighbor, a colleague, or just a passer-by? But what if you don't have the option of personally approaching the police or other appropriate bodies?"

A few things should have tipped off internet users. The application, which offers the chance "to send [your] own denunciation from [your] smartphone," is a hoax launched in January 2023, by a Russian computer scientist exiled in Europe. During the seven months or so that it was available for download, thousands of users were in the dark. Over this period, "My Denunciation" received around 7,000 messages, as its creator, who remains anonymous, explained to various media.

Admittedly, a majority of users have been playing along with the parody or criticizing the very concept of the service. But 20% of the content, according to the app's designer and the media outlet Mojem Obyasnit – which had access to the raw data – are full-fledged denunciations, containing precise identities of both the informer and the person being denounced.

The conflict in Ukraine has naturally dominated the debate. "X has expressed himself negatively toward the special military operation [the euphemism used to designate this war]" recurs in all possible variations, following private discussions or after the author of the denunciation has spotted a critical publication on social networks. Many messages also contain information about people hiding from military call-ups. "I demand that Alexei be sent to the front," wrote one of Alexei's acquaintances. "He received two summonses and ignored them."

Those who support the war, but dare to criticize Russian President Vladimir Putin, are not spared. A fitness trainer from Nizhny Novgorod, for example, was accused of having "referenced the person of the president with vulgar words." "So young and already against Putin...," lamented an anonymous person about a young man she suggested should be sent to the front "to learn to love the fatherland."

According to the findings of Mojem Obyasnit, an investigative media site in exile but well-reputed, half of these "real" denunciations were aimed at a relative or neighbor. Some 80% would have fallen – if the application were serious – under military censorship laws ("discrediting the army" or "spreading false information") adopted after the invasion of Ukraine. The denunciators found the app all the more credible, given that several Russian regions have set up systems similar to "My Denunciation" – and these are real.

You have 53.78% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.