Companies and enterprises based on blockchain technology must now have a certification issued by the Federal Security Service (FSB) of Russia to operate and provide services within the nation.
Although Russia recently implemented the technology blockchain to establish an electronic voting system in the cities of Moscow and Nizhniy, the government is now implementing measures that seek to impose limits on the use of this technology within its territory. The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation, the FSB, successor to the former KGB, is implementing a certification process for all those companies and companies that provide services related to blockchain technology, so these organizations will be under the supervision of this intelligence service.
Likewise, it is estimated that blockchain companies wishing to obtain certifications and licenses to provide financial and business services within Russian territory will have to pay up to 100 thousand dollars for them, in addition to waiting up to a year for approval.
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What's behind the FSB certification?
Although there is no Russian law that establishes that blockchain companies and companies must have a certificate issued by the FSB, in the Federal Law No. 63-FZ of April 6, 2011 If it is established that these organizations must have electronic signatures validated and certified by the state, so that the documents can be taken as legal.
So, although by law companies are not required to certify before the FSB, they do have a compelling reason to do so; since with this certification your processes and transactions acquire legal meaning before the state.
Higher level of security and trust for users and clients
Likewise, certification will guarantee a higher level of security and trust for clients and users, so investments in certified companies can benefit in the medium and long term. Even for several experts such as Dmitri Plakhov, Director of the Technical Committee of the Technology Center of St. Petersburg University, the implementation and requirement of certifications will be an additional competitive advantage for providers of financial and business services based on blockchain, which will guarantee that such services will meet all the requirements of established security.
The certification process moves away from the transparency of blockchain
On the other hand, although certification can provide greater security and protection to clients and users, the process to obtain it can be complicated and is far from transparent. FSB certification of companies is carried out through software developed by certificate providers who are themselves certified by the FSB. For example, the FSB-certified system MasterChain, the enterprise blockchain of the Central Bank of Russia, is under the supervision of the company CryptoPRO, which in turn is certified by the FSB.
Likewise, the company Bitfury, who was responsible for developing the Russian voting system Exonum based on blockchain, it also used software developed by an FSB certified provider, so that the voting system was compatible with the required government requirements. As we see, although the software used is responsible for encrypting the data, guaranteeing the security and connection of the nodes, among other aspects, the functions of these software depend on the developer who designs them, and will be under the supervision of centralized companies.
On the other hand, FSB certifications can take up to more than 1 year to be issued, due to the complexity of the study that must be carried out on the entire blockchain architecture of an organization to evaluate the different threat models. Furthermore, to all this is added that the FSB has little experience in blockchain systems, so it has to deal with new and innovative concepts related to this technology, such as smart contracts (smart contracts).
Likewise, the Russian cryptographic standard can also make it difficult for international and global projects to have a presence within its territory, because the nation is strict regarding the use of foreign cryptographic tools, while the use of Russian standards abroad can not be very flashy.
Still, despite the new rules imposed by the state for blockchain companies and companies, Russia has been innovating for several years in this technology that is still in development. It is about adapting to the new technological era or falling behind in time by offering obsolete and impractical services, and Russia has chosen the first option. The country's central bank and commercial banks are adapting to the new digital situation and innovating in new and modern financial and banking services. Likewise, legislators recently recognized Bitcoin as a legal digital asset within the country, which can be used to store value and as an investment asset.
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