Devs claim Apple is banning VPNs in Russia 'more effectively' than Putin

Under pressure from Russia’s Roskomnadzor, Apple has removed a number of VPN apps from the Russian App Store: Red Shield VPN and Le VPN shared notices citing noncompliance with local laws, Roskomsvoboda counted at least eight affected including major brands (NordVPN, Proton, PIA), and Interfax later reported 25 VPN apps were taken down. Some providers say they self-unlisted earlier, and Google has received similar takedown requests but has not acted; the focus appears to be stopping distribution of VPN apps rather than merely blocking VPN servers.