A Moscow court has fined Apple 2 million roubles (about US$33,900) for allegedly refusing to store the data of Russian citizens on Russian territory, the Interfax news agency reported (as noted by Reuters).
This isn’t the first dust-up between the tech giant and the Russian government. Moscow has clashed with Big Tech over content, censorship, data and local representation in a simmering dispute that has erupted into a full-on battle since Russia sent its armed forces into Ukraine on Feb. 24.
In April a Moscow court ruled that it was lawful for Russia’s anti-monopoly regulator to open an antitrust case against Apple over an App Store payment dispute, dismissing a case brought by the tech giant. In December 2021, Apple brought legal action against Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) in an effort to challenge the request to “stop abuse in the market” submitted by that body earlier this year,” according to a RT report.