Russia-Ukraine war: How Google, Apple & other tech companies are reacting to the crisis

As the Russian forces are invading Ukraine, technology leaders in the world are reacting to the situation. The Ukrainian leaders have reached out to top tech companies of the world, including Google and Apple to restrain their services in the Russian mainland. Apart from this, there are several companies that have been operational in Ukraine and have either stopped operations or are preparing for future scenarios. Keep reading to know more about the stance of tech companies on the Russia-Ukraine war. 

Mykhailo Federov, the vice president of Ukraine has written letters to two of the biggest tech companies in the world, Apple and Google. In a tweet, Federov mentions that he has contacted Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, to block the Apple Store services for the citizens of the Russian Federation, supporting the package of US government sanctions. The vice president has also addressed Google to stop their services in the Russian Federation, including Google Pay. 

Tech companies response to Russia-Ukraine war

• Meta(formerly known as Facebook): Nathaniel Gleicher, head of security policy at Meta announced on February 26, 2022, that Meta is "prohibiting Russian state media from running ads or monetizing on our platform anywhere in the world." On Instagram, the company has rolled out a privacy and account security alert in Ukraine with specific steps on how to protect your account.
• Twitter: The microblogging platform has temporarily paused advertisements in Ukraine and Russia to ensure critical public safety information is elevated and ads don't detract users from it. Twitter is proactively monitoring tweets on the platform to avoid manipulation. The platform has also mentioned that it is aware of restrictions for some people in Russia. 
• YouTube: Along with Facebook, Alphabet-owned content sharing platform YouTube has also blocked advertising on channels that are run by Russian media outlets. In a statement, YouTube says that it is "pausing a number of channels' ability to monetize on YouTube."
• Google: Google has imposed restrictions on the Russian media outlets that will not be able to display any advertisement via Google Search or through Gmail. Google Europe team is actively monitoring the war in Ukraine. A Google spokesperson has told Axios that "in response to a government request, we've restricted access to RT and a number of other channels in Ukraine."
• Grammarly: The language solution company has prepared contingency plans for various scenarios along with financial and logistical assistance to support its team members in Ukraine. brad Hoover, the CEO of Grammarly has mentioned in a post on LinkedIn that the company will continue to hire for various roles and offer Grammarly for free to all nonprofits and NGOs. 
• Apple: The world's most valuable tech company has not clarified its stand on the Russia-Ukraine war yet.