Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
It would be sold to banks and telecommunikcation operaters, just to name a few.
We’re always told to secure our personal data when shopping or doing anything else online.
There is a whole plethora of possible consequences of our data falling in to the wrong hands, including identity theft, targeted phishing scamps, financial fraud and much more.
But what is your personal data actually worth? It’s a borderline impossible question to answer, but according to Deepstrike, a complete identity package of a person, including social security number, date of birt and similar information, sells for between $20 and $100 on the dark web in 2025.
Unless you’re Russian. And the seller is your own authorities.
Then your information is worth five euros, according to a new draft from the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Expanding data access
According to Digi24, a draft published on the government’s regulatory portal, the Ministry of Internal Affairs plans to provide banks, telecom firms and other organisations with access to citizen data.
The information would include passport validity, registration details for Russian and foreign nationals, and records of residence permits and migration status.
Authorities propose charging 50 rubles per request, with data transfers handled through the state’s interdepartmental electronic system, which already connects more than 500 entities.
Revenue ambitions
The ministry said demand for such data is already high, with over 1.6 billion requests recorded in 2024 and more than 3.1 billion in 2025.
If approved, the initiative could generate about 119.6 billion rubles annually, according to an explanatory note attached to the draft.
Officials say the funds would be directed toward supporting the operations of internal affairs bodies.
Staffing pressures
The proposal comes as the ministry faces staffing shortages. Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev stated there is a deficit of 212,000 officers.
He pointed to low wages and heavy workloads, noting that a first-year police officer in Moscow earns no more than 86,000 rubles, roughly half the city’s average salary, according to Rosstat.
Housing shortages further complicate recruitment, with waiting lists stretching “for decades into the future,” Kolokoltsev said.
Sources: Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs draft document, Rosstat, Digi24, Deepstrike
