Blocked Bitcoin Websites Back Online After Court Case Win

A regional Russian court has overturned a decision today that restricted seven bitcoin websites from public access in January.

Russian-language bitcoin news blog BTCsec reported that a city court in Nevyansk had acted improperly by blocking the websites. As a result of the decision, educational and commercial websites including Bitcoin.org, Coinspot.ru and Indacoin.com will now be publicly accessible once again.

Representatives of certain affected websites had previously argued that there are no current laws that prohibit the release of information related to bitcoin or digital currency.

In interview, BTCsec's Ivan Tikhon told CoinDesk that the event, while positive, is unlikely to have a larger effect on the debate surrounding digital currency in Russia, owing largely to a forthcoming bill that would outlaw money surrogates.

"I do not know how it will affect the opinion of the government or the central bank," Tikhon said. "Bitcoin is not illegal, but this does not mean that everything will start to use it or that law enforcement will not exceed the official authority."

Tikhon previously appeared in court on 24th April along with a representative from exhibition company Smile Expo, which has previously put on informational conferences centered on bitcoin.

BTCsec reported that a full text of the court hearing will be available in the coming days.

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