Russia's federal statistics agency Rosstat has spent at least 231 million roubles since 2024 on government contracts for information security, according to a report by IStories. The journalists examined the agency's procurement records and digital-transformation plans. Their investigation was published on November 5, after a cyberattack on Rosstat's online resources.
The journalists found lower actual spending figures for the relevant category in the agency's digital-transformation programme: 47.2 million roubles for 2024 and 24.6 million for 2025. The programme had budgeted 101.5 million roubles for 2025 and 238.5 million for 2026. Contract expenditure and programme figures cover different categories and cannot be added together as though they were separate expenses.
The investigation covers only the contracts accessible to the reporters, making 231 million roubles a minimum estimate rather than a verified total for Rosstat's cybersecurity budget. Rosstat had previously said it found no indication that protected data had been leaked during the attack.