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0 pointsgrishka17d ago0 comments

> Chile, you virtually needed to be a citizen, as I recall.

I heard something similar about Russia after recent changes actually, it could as well be impossible for non-residents so tourists just stick with international roaming and public wifi. IIRC there's a catch-22 situation where you need a Gosuslugi (online government services portal) account to buy a sim, but you need a Russian phone number to sign up for one. As a citizen, you just need your ID (internal passport).

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4 comments · 2 top-level

throw-the-towel17d ago· 2 in thread

But of course, the public Wifi also requires authentication. With, you guessed it, a phone number.

grishkaOP17d ago

Yes, that's another law they have. Can't access the internet anonymously, basically. And yes, foreign phone numbers do work.

Though I've seen, plenty of times, smaller places have a "public" wifi with a password, and the password is just written on a piece of paper somewhere. That must technically violate that law. But you know, laws in Russia...

pezezin17d ago

The first and last time I was in Russia was in 2019, passing by Moscow airport, and you already required a phone number to use the public WiFi, but any foreign number was OK.

codedokode17d ago

Foreigners must provide their biometric data to buy a local SIM card. They better just use a tourist SIM card.

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