MOSCOW, July 31. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law imposing fines for searching online for extremist content intentionally and who advertise VPN services.

According to the new rules, violators will pay from 3,000 to 5,000 ($30-60) rubles for searching for extremist materials from the relevant list, including using a VPN. For advertising VPNs, households will pay a 50,000-80,000 ($600-1000) ruble fine, officials - from 80,000 to 150,000 rubles, and companies - from 200,000 to 500,000 rubles.

Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media Minister Maksut Shadayev previously said that the new norms would not affect the layman – search engines would provide peoples' queries to the Interior Ministry only as part of a criminal case. He said that law enforcement officers would have to prove intent and that the user knew in advance that these were extremist materials from the relevant list.

Putin also signed a law that makes using a VPN while committing a crime an aggravating circumstance.

Amendments have been made to Article 63 of the Criminal Code, which outlines the list of aggravating circumstances. Now crimes committed "using hardware and software means of access to information resources, information and telecommunication networks, access to which is restricted," will carry stiffer penalties.

The law will enter into effect on September 1.

People can freely use VPN services for legitimate purposes, as Anton Gorelkin, first deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, previously explained.