A report by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) says websites of banned Russian outlets such as RT and Sputnik remain accessible in 76% of cases tested across six EU countries, despite sanctions introduced in 2022.
The study found that enforcement by internet service providers is largely ineffective, with Slovakia showing no blocks, Poland weak enforcement, and France and Germany performing best.
The ISD criticised the European Commission for failing to publish a comprehensive, updated list of domains linked to sanctioned outlets, leaving countries and ISPs without clear guidance.
Russian outlets exploit loopholes by using mirror domains and relying on anonymous X accounts to share tens of thousands of links to banned sites, particularly targeting French and German audiences.
While most sanctioned sites attract minimal EU traffic, some RT-linked domains draw over 100,000 monthly visits in Germany.
