Github bans accounts of Russian developers affiliated with sanctioned companies

Major developer platform Github has reportedly suspended more than a dozen Russian developer accounts associated with US government-sanctioned organizations.

The sanctioned accounts include some of Russia’s largest banks: Sberbank and Alfa-Bank, as well as individual developers with ties to the sanctioned firms. However, many individual accounts with no affiliations or ties to sanctioned firms have also been suspended. Researcher Sergey Bobrov, who reportedly has no ties to any such company, reported that his account was suspended on April 15 and then immediately restored.

My github account is unlocked, thanks everyone. The ban was related to the sanctions imposed on my former employer.

– Sergei Bobrov (@Black2Fan) April 15, 2022

Another individual developer, Vadim Yanitskiy, wrote:

“My Github account has been suspended without prior notification. Maybe because I’m ethnically Russian. “GitHub’s vision is to be the home for all developers, no matter where they live,” they said.

Github is a popular software development platform used to store, track, and collaborate on software projects. It allows developers to upload their own code files and collaborate with other developers on open source projects. Due to its open-source nature, it has become a core part of the crypto ecosystem.

According to initial reports, most of the companies and developers facing suspension are owned by private Russian banks, and no crypto company or developer was affected. Github has not responded to Cointelegraph’s request for comment at the time of publication.

Related: North Korea-owned Ethereum developer gets 5 years for breaking sanctions

After some Russian developers contacted Github about the suspension, they received a response explaining the reasons for their suspension, with an added link to appeal.

The suspension of individual developers’ accounts has raised many questions, especially when the open-source platform has promised to “ensure free open-source services are available to everyone, including developers in Russia.”