Sergei Kiriyenko, Russia's first deputy chief of staff of the presidential office, held a meeting at the beginning of March with government officials regarding the 2024 presidential election. During the meeting, Kiriyenko announced that iPhones were being banned and employees have until April 1 to either throw them away or "give it to the kids."

The reason for the ban is because the Kremlin believes Apple's smartphones pose a security risk and are "more susceptible to hacking and espionage by Western experts compared to other smartphones."

The ban initially seemed limited to those working within the presidential administration, but employees in the domestic policy, public projects, state council, and the IT and communications departments will also need to get rid of their iPhones by the end of the month.

As an alternative, the Kremlin says smartphones running Android, any Chinese mobile operating system, or the Russian Linux-based Aurora OS are fine. Some employees may have a new smartphone given to them courtesy of the Kremlin, although it's unclear who would be eligible and which phone they would receive.

Apple stopped all online sales in Russia back in March last year, so used iPhones are probably in high demand and should fetch a decent price. The iPhone 14 never officially launched in Russia, but that didn't stop pre-orders opening for the smartphone in the country last year, and it's likely at least a few government officials own one. Meanwhile, anyone in Russia opting for an Android phone can't access the Google Play store, but there is an alternative called NashStore.