Moscow court fines Google $32,330 for not removing ‘false information’ on Ukraine war

A Moscow court on Thursday imposed a fine of 3 million Russian rubles ($32,330) on Google for failing to remove “false information” on the country’s “special military operation” in Ukraine, state news agency TASS said.

A judge of the Moscow Magistrates’ Court said the court found the US tech giant guilty of “committing an administrative offense under Part 2 of Article 13.41 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation."

A notice was sent to Google on the need to remove videos on YouTube, which, among others, contained “false information” on the war that began in February last year.

Google stopped selling online advertising in Russia in March 2022 after the military campaign, but kept some free services available.

In June, a Russian court fined Google 4 billion rubles ($43 million) for failing to pay an earlier fine over alleged abuse of its dominant position in the video hosting market.