Russian Communications and Mass Media Minister Nikolai Nikiforov says government officials “have swapped their iPads for Samsung tablets in an effort to prevent U.S. electronic eavesdropping.”

According to The Moscow Times, Nikiforov said “the disappearance of iPads from Cabinet meetings was unrelated to sanctions that followed Russia’s annexation of Crimea, but was caused by ‘purely technical’ security considerations.”

“Samsung was an official laptop at the Sochi games,” where “Games employees [actually covered] up the Apple logo on visitors’ laptops to prevent ambush marketing.”

Following reports about increasing U.S. interest “in spying on Russia after the Crimea crisis,” Nikiforov sent an instagram message indicating “U.S. security services have put an end to further use of U.S. computer software and hardware in Russian government and related sectors.”

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