Your Sanctions & Export Controls Toolbox
Your Sanctions & Export Controls Toolbox
Importance of Sanctions and Compliance.
A recent in-depth investigation by Follow the Money revealed a disturbing trend. A Dutch company, Toloka, a subsidiary of Russia’s Yandex, may have contributed to the development of facial recognition software. It is used by the Putin regime to identify and arrest protesters. This has come to light through research by Follow the Money. Researched jointly with The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Paper Trail Media.
Face Recognition Software
This revelation highlights how international sanctions can be undermined. And why it is crucial that these sanctions be enforced. Whether the Dutch government is currently conducting an investigation is not known. But they did indicate to FTM that they are currently investigating 192 cases, including possibly this one.
What exactly happened? Putin’s regime uses facial recognition software to identify and arrest protesters. Toloka may have contributed to this.
Research suggests that the Dutch company Toloka may have been involved in the training. This from software used to identify opponents of Putin’s regime. Toloka provides services to Tevian and NTechLab. These are two companies that have been on the European sanctions list for human rights violations in Russia since July 2023. With Toloka, we have a clear example of how a Dutch company may have contributed to human rights violations.
Conclusion
Sanctions are a crucial tool to ensure that we in the European Union do not contribute to the war in Ukraine. But neither is supporting the Putin regime in its suppression of human rights in Russia. It is essential for companies to understand what activities are subject to sanctions, the ultimate purpose of the services they provide, and to act with a moral compass. This ensures that they are not consciously or unconsciously contributing to the perpetuation of the Putin regime.
If after 13 sanction packages from the European Union it is no longer clear what is and is not allowed, please feel free to contact us. Trade Controls Compliance is happy to help you ensure your business processes are aligned so you can conduct business in a compliant manner.
Further information:
Support Follow The Money and read their article:
Dutch tech company helped Russia with facial recognition software to nab protesters
Timeline EU sanctions against Russia
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Do you need support in the field of export, sanctions policy and are you looking for a compliance project manager or would you like to have a compliance baseline measurement, contact us for the toolbox of support Trade Controls Compliance offers you.
Trade Controls Compliance – Your Sanctions & Export Controls Toolbox!!!
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Your sanctions and export controls toolbox
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