Hackers undermine Russia's attempts to control the internet

Moscow’s attempt to control the internet inside Russia has come unstuck following a campaign by hackers who have subverted a system of blacklisting sites deemed inappropriate.

Since Vladimir Putin’s re-election in 2012, authorities have banned thousands of sites – some for promoting “social ills”, others for political dissent – by inscribing their particulars on a blacklist and forcing internet service providers (ISPs) to block them.

But in recent weeks, activists seeking to push back against the crackdown have undermined the system by purchasing banned sites and inserting the particulars of perfectly legal web pages into their domain names.

Havoc ensued.

Last month, cash machines stopped working. Major news sites and social media services were blocked and even Google became inaccessible.