Russian activist files first-ever lawsuit against Vkontakte for sharing user data with the police

Liliya Chanysheva, an activist who works at Alexey Navalny’s headquarters in St. Petersburg is suing the social network Vkontakte for disclosing users’ personal information to Russian law enforcement. According to Chanysheva’s lawyer, police have tried to justify the information collection by citing two federal laws, though both these laws limit law enforcement’s information-gathering powers to “exclusively within the scope of their authorities, or in relation to misdemeanor or felony investigations.”

In recent months, Vkontakte has weathered bad publicity for sharing user data with the police and helping the authorities identify “Internet criminals” in controversial, often politicized trials.