Russia Introduces ‘Quarantine’ for SIM Cards to Combat Ukrainian Drones

To combat Ukrainian drones over Russia, the subscribers of Russian mobile operators who have used roaming or have not activated their SIM card for more than three days will have their mobile internet and SMS services disabled for a day after returning to the country.

The new procedure for providing communication services is expected to be introduced soon, according to Meduza.

According to the Russian authorities’ plan, the new measure is intended to become part of a system for monitoring the use of SIM cards, particularly to prevent drone attacks.

To shorten the blocking period, users will be offered to undergo special verification. To do this, they must follow a link from an SMS and enter a CAPTCHA.

After identity confirmation, the subscriber’s connection will be automatically restored.

Sources cited by the publication note that the main goal of such restrictions is to combat ‘ownerless’ SIM cards, which may be used for remote drone control or to carry out cyberattacks.

Russian mobile operators began introducing similar measures as early as the beginning of October 2025. At that time, they referred to a so-called ‘cooling-off period’ for holders of foreign SIM cards.

After crossing the border, users were unable to access mobile internet for 24 hours. The initiators of the decision claimed that this would help limit the use of mobile networks for military purposes.

However, just two weeks later, it turned out that the system was malfunctioning. Many operators were unable to lift the restrictions on time, and the limitations affected not only mobile internet but also SMS messaging.

As a result, the new measures affected not only foreign tourists but also Russians returning from abroad.

Earlier, a ‘cooling-off period’ during which communication services are restricted had already been introduced for foreign SIM cards. This restriction was also justified as a means to combat drones that use cellular networks.

In June of this year, it became known that new batches of Russian Shahed-136 attack drones are being widely equipped with means to connect to the Ukrainian mobile network and transmit data.