GitHub Reportedly Suspends Accounts Related to Sanctioned Russian Orgs

pcmag.com:

GitHub is reportedly suspending the accounts of Russian developers with connections to organizations sanctioned by the US government following the invasion of Ukraine in February.

BleepingComputer reports that GitHub started to suspend these accounts on April 13. The company has targeted accounts managed by the sanctioned companies, but it's also said to be suspending the accounts of individuals with loose ties to the organizations in question.

GitHub seems to be struggling to identify what accounts should be suspended, however, with the company reportedly banning Russian programmers who are no longer affiliated with the sanctioned companies. (Luckily those developers can appeal the suspension via email.)

BleepingComputer notes that GitHub said in a March blog post that it was "continuing to ensure free open source services are available to all, including developers in Russia," despite calls for the company to prevent those devs from continuing to use its platform.

But it's also worth noting that GitHub said the following:

At the same time, we are taking action to support our platform and comply with the many government mandates you’ve likely read about in the context of this war. Our legal team examines such mandates thoroughly, and we are complying with export controls and trade regulations as they evolve. This includes implementing stringent new export controls that are aimed at severely restricting Russia’s access to technologies and other items it needs to sustain its aggressive military capabilities.

GitHub is based in the US. That means it has to comply with US sanctions, which is why it's started to suspend these Russian accounts. The suspension of accounts managed by people who aren't affiliated with these