Reporting of information about accounts on the Internet by government officials. Why are civil servants leaving social networks? And is it really necessary

Image copyright RIA Novosti Image caption Amendments to the law, obliging officials to report on their social networks, prepared by United Russia member Vladimir Burmatov

Civil servants will have to report on their pages on social networks in order to "clearly understand the consequences of their statements on the Internet." The BBC Russian service was told about this in the Ministry of Labor. A code of conduct on the Internet for officials has not yet been developed, so they will have to proceed from "general principles of ethics."

Civil servants must inform employers about their social media accounts by April 1, 2017.

According to the amendments to the law "On State Civil Service", which United Russia Party Vladimir Burmatov and LDPR representative Andrei Lugovoy, and which were adopted by the State Duma of the VI convocation in the last days of their work, officials must annually report on their social media accounts. And those who apply for a civil service position are required to report on their online activity for the previous three years.

The law (Article 20.2) states that the government will approve the form according to which officials and those who get a job in the civil service have to report their social networks. The Ministry of Labor is already preparing it.

An official who has forgotten or hid his page on the social network will lose his job. According to paragraph 13 of Art. 33 of the Law "On State Civil Service" failure to comply with the restrictions and failure to fulfill the obligations established by this law is the basis for dismissal from the civil service.

The requirement of the law applies to employees of the presidential administration and department managers, to employees of the apparatus of the government, the State Duma, the Federation Council, the Supreme and Constitutional Courts, as well as to officials of the Prosecutor General's Office and the apparatus of the Investigative Committee. In addition, employees of ministries will have to report from the deputy minister and below. The president, prime minister, ministers, deputies and senators are not subject to this law.

The Ministry of Labor believes that the requirement for civil servants to report their accounts is "not repressive." "This will force officials to more clearly understand the consequences of their statements. Otherwise, you can express your point of view, but it should not be offensive," the Deputy Director of the Department of State Policy in the Sphere of State and Municipal Service, Anti-Corruption, explained to the BBC Russian Service Leonid Vakhnin.

The official, he said, must understand that on the Internet he represents not only himself, but also the body where he works. "The changes are aimed at increasing the responsibility of civil servants and motivating them to be more respectful towards citizens both in service and outside of office hours," he said.

If a civil servant hides his accounts on social networks, the question of trust in him arises, Vakhnin said. "Since he is hiding, it means that this issue should be dealt with in more detail, as well as with information about income," he said. Vakhnin added that not all officials who informed the employer about the presence of a page on the social network will be checked, but selectively, if special grounds arise.

Who has already suffered for the words?

Although the requirement to report on accounts is being introduced only now, there have already been cases when officials were fired for posts on social networks.

So, for public criticism of his superiors, Sergei Belyakov lost his post as Deputy Minister of Economic Development. He was fired for recording on Facebook. On August 6, 2014, he wrote that he was ashamed of the freezing of pension savings, and on the same day, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev dismissed him.

The post on Facebook cost the post and the vice-governor of the Oryol region Alexander Ryavkin. True, he did not criticize the authorities on the social network. He celebrated the New Year 2015 in the Czech Republic, and he talked about this on a social network, posting a photo from the Grand Pupp restaurant in Karlovy Vary. "After all, this is the best restaurant in Karlovy Vary, no doubt. You rarely meet establishments with a three-hundred-year history, traditions and recipes. Foie gras, of course, is something divine here!" Ryavkin wrote (the spelling of the original is preserved).

The post caused outrage among the Russian Internet audience, especially among the residents of the Oryol region. Ryavkin deleted it, but in a comment to the radio "Moscow speaking" said that he saw "nothing wrong" in celebrating the New Year with his family in a restaurant. "This is my personal Facebook page, which talks about my personal life, to which I have the right, especially on vacation. Some people like it, some don't," he added.

Many did not like it, and on February 13 Ryavkin resigned. "According to some federal experts, a slight decrease in the positions of the governor of the Oryol region Vadim Potomsky in various ratings is due, among other things, to the massing of information about my trip to the Czech Republic," he explained. Ryavkin said that he was leaving out of respect for Potomsky and his team.

It is difficult to say what exactly officials should no longer write on social networks, since there is no document that would spell out all the restrictions. Vakhnin told the BBC that there are general principles of office behavior and understanding of ethics, and officials should be mindful of them when they go online.

No layoff scandals

In October 2010, the tweet of the Governor of the Tver Region Dmitry Zelenin from the reception in the Alexander Hall of the Kremlin on the occasion of the visit to Russia of the President of the Federal Republic of Germany Christian Wulff also turned around. He posted a photo of an earthworm, which he found in his plate, with the caption: "This happens in the Alexander Hall. Salad with live earthworms is served along with beef." He later deleted the microblog entry.

In response, Sergei Prikhodko, the then presidential aide on international affairs, recommended that "fellow lawyers" introduce such an article as "dismissal for dementia" into the wording for assessing the activities of governors. And the press secretary of the head of the president's affairs, Viktor Khrekov, said that "despite the absurdity of the situation," an official check will be carried out.

In November of the same year, Dmitry Medvedev, then still president, congratulated Zelenin on Twitter on his birthday and wished to him to "kill the worm". Zelenin left the post of governor of his own free will only in June 2011.

The press secretary of the Investigative Committee of Russia Vladimir Markin has repeatedly made harsh statements on Twitter. So, on July 5, 2016 he

Russian officials will be obliged to inform the employer about accounts on social networks, blogs and forums. For the first time, they will have to submit a corresponding report before April 1, 2017 - the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation is already preparing a special form for filling out. If an official forgets to indicate an existing account or does not want to do this, he is threatened with dismissal.

The basis for the mandatory report on the participation of civil servants in social networks and blogs was Art. 20.2 of the Law "On State Civil Service" (79-FZ), which obliges officials to disclose in which social networks and forums they participate and under what names. The Ministry of Labor told Izvestia that the main purpose of such regulation is "to ensure that civil servants comply with the rules of professional ethics." The data provided on participation in social networks, blogs and forums will not be publicly available.

The obligation of Russian citizens applying for positions in the civil service, as well as civil servants, is established to provide information about the addresses of sites or pages of sites on the Internet on which these persons posted publicly available information, as well as data allowing them to be identified, - noted in press service of the Ministry of Labor. - Data that allows identifying a citizen or civil servant means any information about a citizen or civil servant published by this person on a social network, blog, forum and allowing the identification of a citizen or civil servant.

The interlocutor of Izvestia in the Ministry of Labor explained that a person can be identified using a set of data, such as surname, first name and photograph.

Representatives of several different ministries and departments interviewed by Izvestia said that they had not yet collected data on their accounts in social networks, since it was not clear in what form such information should be presented.

The corresponding form is already being prepared in the Ministry of Labor, later it will be approved by the government. The Ministry of Labor did not explain exactly how the form will look, noting that it is possible to start collecting and organizing data right now.

Until the relevant act of the Russian government is adopted, we consider it possible to carry out the obligatory submission of information in any form with the certification of a citizen's signature, - the press service of the Ministry of Labor told Izvestia. - The contractor is an authorized representative of the employer of a civil servant. Government authorities are encouraged to conduct screening activities on a systematic basis in relation to citizens when entering the civil service, in relation to civil servants - once a year.

If an official forgets to tell about some account, this will be the fact of submitting false and incomplete information, according to the Ministry of Labor.

Failure to provide information to civil servants entails the release of a civil servant from the civil service and his dismissal, - said the press service of the ministry.

There are a number of cases when officials may not report on the activity on the Internet.

This information is not provided by civil servants if publicly available information was posted as part of the performance of official duties, - said the press service of the Ministry of Labor. - These cases include, for example, the creation by civil servants of an official account of a state body on the Internet or the exercise of the functions of a press secretary with the placement of official information of a state body on the personal website.

The Ministry of Labor is confident that among the officials there may be those who do not use social networks.

If a citizen denies the posting of publicly available information, as well as data allowing him to be identified, on sites or pages of sites on the Internet, then we believe it is necessary to receive confirmation of this fact from him in writing, the press service of the Ministry of Labor noted.

Analyst of the Russian Association for Electronic Communications (RAEC) Karen Ghazaryan recalled that there are about 1.5 million officials in Russia, of which, according to his estimates, about 70% can use social networks.

Compliance with ethical codes is not bad, considering that officials are public people, Karen Ghazaryan said. - The main question is how to check the completeness of the information provided and how to prove that the found account on the social network really belongs to an official, and not a fake one? I hope that all these issues will be provided for in the government act.

As an example of the loud resonance of the official’s statements on social networks, one can recall the post of the former Minister of Education of the Russian Federation Dmitry Livanov, who negatively characterized the MTS SIM card on Twitter. One rude word on the Web, and an avalanche of criticism from MPs, social movements and ordinary citizens fell on the minister.

The period is approaching when state and municipal employees of our country, rolling up their sleeves, will begin to submit information about income and property obligations. This year they added another headache. It is necessary to ensure the presentation of information about the addresses of sites or pages on the Internet where public information was posted, as well as data that allows you to identify the employee.

Filling out the site address submission form for employees is new and raises many questions. The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of the Russian Federation has developed guidelines that simplify filling out the form for submitting information about website addresses. You can download the guidelines here.

The methodological recommendations are rather short, if it is still reasonable to shorten references to regulatory legal acts, then they could even become readable. What is useful is the recommendations for filling out the form for submitting information about site addresses, consider below.

Submission of information about site addresses is mandatory for the following persons:

1. citizens applying for positions in the federal state civil service and the state civil service of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation (hereinafter - the civil service);
2. citizens applying for positions in the municipal service;
3. federal government civil servants;
4. state civil servants of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation;

Filling out the form for submitting information about site addresses can be carried out both in print and in handwriting. Separately, it is noted that if publicly available information, as well as data allowing identification of an employee, was not posted on the Internet, the form is not filled out.

Filling out the form begins with entering the person's reference data for the reporting period. Methodical recommendations reveal in what case the surname is written, in what order the series and passport number are written, in what numbers, and so on.

• the address of the site or page is entered as it is displayed in the browser line;
  sites or pages are entered into the table when the following conditions are met:
  publicly available information was posted on the site and (or) page of the site;
  the site and (or) the page of the site contains data that allows identifying the identity of an employee or citizen;
  publicly available information was posted on the site and (or) page of the site directly by an employee or citizen;
  the specified information was posted on the site and (or) page of the site during the reporting period.
• e-mail addresses, instant services, as well as sites related to the purchase of goods and services are not indicated in the table;
• personal pages of social networking sites, as well as blogs, microblogs, personal sites are subject to inclusion in the table;
• sites or pages containing information that allow the identification of the employee, for example, last name and first name, photograph, place of service (work), are subject to inclusion in the table.

Video on the topic "Presenting information about site addresses"

Report on what you did on the Internet in your free time. This was expected, it was feared, but now it turns out that events are developing according to the worst of the scenarios: instead of filling out the declaration, employees literally run from the Internet! The law, which should not, and could not restrict citizens in their basic rights, has de facto become such a limitation. And now some commentators paint a perspective that is truly apocalyptic. But let's talk about everything in order.

The bone of contention: Article 20.2 (Submission of information about the placement of information in the information and telecommunications network "Internet"), added to the old texts of laws. It is she who requires, starting this year and every year, before April 1, from state and municipal employees, as well as persons applying for the filling of relevant positions, to inform their employer about all places on the Internet where they, acting as a private person and having identified themselves, posted any publicly available information. In this case, an applicant for the position of an employee is obliged to submit a report three calendar years before hiring, and employees - one year before filing a declaration.

The first wave of panic - they say, you will have to remember all the thousands of places in which you left at least one line or "like", reveal passwords, report not only about websites, but also instant messaging services, etc. etc. - managed to shoot down thanks to the explanations of the Ministry of Labor. The ministry has developed a methodology for filling out an "Internet declaration", explaining, in particular, that it is only about the sites on which the employee posted his photo, first and last name, that online stores and instant messaging services are not required to be mentioned, and that disclosure passwords are also out of the question. Thus, the list of sites whose presence is subject to declaration is actually reduced to dating services and social networks: Vkontakte, Odnoklassniki, Facebook, Google+, Twitter and the like.

And this is a significant relaxation in comparison with that terrible picture of total "Internet control", which was drawn by commentators who freely interpreted the law earlier: at least you don't have to be afraid that, having forgotten to declare some Internet forum, where you left a couple of lines, you will accused of data misrepresentation and fired. But this is also a new big problem. The fact is that social networks have become the main platform for expressing opinions in private in recent years. So why did the state suddenly need to invade the private life of a citizen (and this, as the Constitution says, includes "off-duty activities")?

The answer, given by the same Ministry of Labor, is as simple as it is dubious: the "Internet declaration" is designed to ensure "the observance of the rules of professional ethics by civil servants." Translating from into human language, the state obviously wants to make sure that, even in their free time, employees do not engage in things that are incompatible with the moral character of a civil servant of the Russian Federation. True, what exactly can be a criterion for such incompatibility cannot be said for sure: no relevant explanations have been given, and there have been no dismissals yet. But commentators suggest a wide range of "misconduct": from immoderate criticism of top officials of the state and radical political predilections to, excuse me, banal obscene anecdotes and obscene images.

It is also unclear whether they will name the real reason for the dismissal in case of problems with the declared Internet activity. In truth, this is hardly to be expected. Most likely, they will be fired with a streamlined, non-explanatory formulation of "service inconsistency." So, having lost his job, the employee will not even understand why he flew out!

All this makes one think that the new law is intended not so much to reveal facts of inappropriate behavior on the Internet, but to help prevent such behavior. A seemingly obvious conclusion, which, however, led to a tragedy: state and municipal employees in recent weeks began to leave social networks en masse! To avoid misunderstandings, as they say.

The question is to what extent the new law violates the constitutional rights of citizens, open ... On the one hand, there is an obvious fact of interference in the private life of a citizen (and a civil servant is also a citizen, with all the rights and freedoms!). On the other hand, the state's concern for its image in the new rapidly changing conditions is understandable. After all, if earlier a civil servant, for example, had been noticed taking part in some radical political event, no one would have been surprised at the question of his compliance with the position held. But today it is social networks that have become the main platform for expressing opinions and social activity - and it is reasonable for the state to control this direction. Another conversation is that such control could be implemented less noticeably, without coercion and even without involving the employees themselves. At the very least, this would have avoided talk of a "return to a totalitarian regime."

However, the real problem is not whether 224-ФЗ returns Russia to totalitarianism or not. The main problem, I repeat, is that social networks have become the main platform for expressing opinions and, whether someone wants it or not, the most popular channel of communication, including between the state and the citizen. It has long been customary to give both official and unofficial comments on social networks: there they are easiest to convey to the target audience, and it is easiest to discuss them there. And more and more often it happens that it is difficult or impossible to draw the line between the official and the private: a civil servant who gives explanations on professional issues on the pages of a social network under his own name can act both as a private person and as a representative of the state.

In fact, there is no need to draw a line here, because such a presence of civil servants is in itself extremely valuable: as a result, the state better understands what is happening “on earth”, and ordinary citizens get a chance to look “into the kitchen” where socially important decisions are made ... And the state would support and cherish this spontaneously formed mechanism! Instead, it tries to destroy it.

The prospect for the near future is now: a massive transition of civil servants to the "shadow". After all, they are people too, they have families, friends, colleagues, so of course they will not leave social networks and the Internet. Instead, they will start registering under fictitious names and generally try to behave on the Internet in such a way that it would not be possible to "figure out", attach to the real name. And the fact that they will not go away for good should no doubt please. It is upsetting that the quality of this communication channel, of course, will not be the same.

But what is to be done? I will give a paradoxical recommendation: do not be afraid and do not change anything if you haven’t closed your social media accounts yet! You should not be afraid because, firstly, checking the "Internet declaration" in most cases will inevitably boil down to a cursory reading of it, that is, it will be a pure formality: too much information will have to be checked!

Secondly, do not panic: in order to run into trouble, you will have to do something really terrible, of course, they will not be fired for only obscene jokes. And what are you hiding, by and large? The law requires you to declare Internet activity conducted under your real name. But all of it is already open to everyone! Including any inspector, if there are such.

Finally, thirdly, the fewer civil servants remain in social networks, the more valuable they will be. Valued both by ordinary citizens (who have the opportunity to ask a question in an informal setting and get a qualified answer), and - a paradox! - by the superiors at the service itself (after all, understanding what is happening “on the ground”, one can make better decisions).

P.S. We have written step-by-step instructions for filling out the declaration:.

If you liked the article, recommend it to your friends, acquaintances or colleagues related to municipal or public service. It seems to us that it will be useful and pleasant for them.
When reprinting materials, a reference to the source is required.

Report on what you did on the Internet in your free time. This was expected, it was feared, but now it turns out that events are developing according to the worst of the scenarios: instead of filling out the declaration, employees literally run from the Internet! The law, which should not, and could not restrict citizens in their basic rights, has de facto become such a limitation. And now some commentators paint a perspective that is truly apocalyptic. But let's talk about everything in order.

The bone of contention: Article 20.2 (Submission of information about the placement of information in the information and telecommunications network "Internet"), added to the old texts of laws. It is she who requires, starting this year and every year, before April 1, from state and municipal employees, as well as persons applying for the filling of relevant positions, to inform their employer about all places on the Internet where they, acting as a private person and having identified themselves, posted any publicly available information. In this case, an applicant for the position of an employee is obliged to submit a report three calendar years before hiring, and employees - one year before filing a declaration.

The first wave of panic - they say, you will have to remember all the thousands of places in which you left at least one line or "like", reveal passwords, report not only about websites, but also instant messaging services, etc. etc. - managed to shoot down thanks to the explanations of the Ministry of Labor. The ministry has developed a methodology for filling out an "Internet declaration", explaining, in particular, that it is only about the sites on which the employee posted his photo, first and last name, that online stores and instant messaging services are not required to be mentioned, and that disclosure passwords are also out of the question. Thus, the list of sites whose presence is subject to declaration is actually reduced to dating services and social networks: Vkontakte, Odnoklassniki, Facebook, Google+, Twitter and the like.

And this is a significant relaxation in comparison with that terrible picture of total "Internet control", which was drawn by commentators who freely interpreted the law earlier: at least you don't have to be afraid that, having forgotten to declare some Internet forum, where you left a couple of lines, you will accused of data misrepresentation and fired. But this is also a new big problem. The fact is that social networks have become the main platform for expressing opinions in private in recent years. So why did the state suddenly need to invade the private life of a citizen (and this, as the Constitution says, includes "off-duty activities")?

The answer, given by the same Ministry of Labor, is as simple as it is dubious: the "Internet declaration" is designed to ensure "the observance of the rules of professional ethics by civil servants." Translating from into human language, the state obviously wants to make sure that, even in their free time, employees do not engage in things that are incompatible with the moral character of a civil servant of the Russian Federation. True, what exactly can be a criterion for such incompatibility cannot be said for sure: no relevant explanations have been given, and there have been no dismissals yet. But commentators suggest a wide range of "misconduct": from immoderate criticism of top officials of the state and radical political predilections to, excuse me, banal obscene anecdotes and obscene images.

It is also unclear whether they will name the real reason for the dismissal in case of problems with the declared Internet activity. In truth, this is hardly to be expected. Most likely, they will be fired with a streamlined, non-explanatory formulation of "service inconsistency." So, having lost his job, the employee will not even understand why he flew out!

All this makes one think that the new law is intended not so much to reveal facts of inappropriate behavior on the Internet, but to help prevent such behavior. A seemingly obvious conclusion, which, however, led to a tragedy: state and municipal employees in recent weeks began to leave social networks en masse! To avoid misunderstandings, as they say.

The question is to what extent the new law violates the constitutional rights of citizens, open ... On the one hand, there is an obvious fact of interference in the private life of a citizen (and a civil servant is also a citizen, with all the rights and freedoms!). On the other hand, the state's concern for its image in the new rapidly changing conditions is understandable. After all, if earlier a civil servant, for example, had been noticed taking part in some radical political event, no one would have been surprised at the question of his compliance with the position held. But today it is social networks that have become the main platform for expressing opinions and social activity - and it is reasonable for the state to control this direction. Another conversation is that such control could be implemented less noticeably, without coercion and even without involving the employees themselves. At the very least, this would have avoided talk of a "return to a totalitarian regime."

However, the real problem is not whether 224-ФЗ returns Russia to totalitarianism or not. The main problem, I repeat, is that social networks have become the main platform for expressing opinions and, whether someone wants it or not, the most popular channel of communication, including between the state and the citizen. It has long been customary to give both official and unofficial comments on social networks: there they are easiest to convey to the target audience, and it is easiest to discuss them there. And more and more often it happens that it is difficult or impossible to draw the line between the official and the private: a civil servant who gives explanations on professional issues on the pages of a social network under his own name can act both as a private person and as a representative of the state.

In fact, there is no need to draw a line here, because such a presence of civil servants is in itself extremely valuable: as a result, the state better understands what is happening “on earth”, and ordinary citizens get a chance to look “into the kitchen” where socially important decisions are made ... And the state would support and cherish this spontaneously formed mechanism! Instead, it tries to destroy it.

The prospect for the near future is now: a massive transition of civil servants to the "shadow". After all, they are people too, they have families, friends, colleagues, so of course they will not leave social networks and the Internet. Instead, they will start registering under fictitious names and generally try to behave on the Internet in such a way that it would not be possible to "figure out", attach to the real name. And the fact that they will not go away for good should no doubt please. It is upsetting that the quality of this communication channel, of course, will not be the same.

But what is to be done? I will give a paradoxical recommendation: do not be afraid and do not change anything if you haven’t closed your social media accounts yet! You should not be afraid because, firstly, checking the "Internet declaration" in most cases will inevitably boil down to a cursory reading of it, that is, it will be a pure formality: too much information will have to be checked!

Secondly, do not panic: in order to run into trouble, you will have to do something really terrible, of course, they will not be fired for only obscene jokes. And what are you hiding, by and large? The law requires you to declare Internet activity conducted under your real name. But all of it is already open to everyone! Including any inspector, if there are such.

Finally, thirdly, the fewer civil servants remain in social networks, the more valuable they will be. Valued both by ordinary citizens (who have the opportunity to ask a question in an informal setting and get a qualified answer), and - a paradox! - by the superiors at the service itself (after all, understanding what is happening “on the ground”, one can make better decisions).

P.S. We have written step-by-step instructions for filling out the declaration:.

If you liked the article, recommend it to your friends, acquaintances or colleagues related to municipal or public service. It seems to us that it will be useful and pleasant for them.
When reprinting materials, a reference to the source is required.