QR Codes in the System of Restrictive Measures in the midst of Countering the Coronavirus Spread in Russia: Problems and Prospects of Use

Abstract

The paper discusses the problems of implementing technically capacious solutions in order to regulate public relations based on the case of QR-code technology application during the pandemic of a new coronavirus infection. The use of this technology has caused an increase in conflict potential in Russian society, the cause of protest actions, increased petition activity, appeals to the judicial procedure for resolving the conflict, which also allows us to restart discussions about the legitimacy, proportionality and balance of the legal measures taken to the specifics of the social problem. The paper considers the problem of the introduction of QR-coding technology as a trigger of social tension in the context of trust issues in the framework of communication between the regulator and the public; social inequality and social exclusion; distribution of power powers in the social system; distribution of competencies for regulating the problem between state and public administration bodies. The analysis of these aspects of public relations reveals a number of unaccounted for defects in the introduction of high-tech technology. In particular, the authors show that in the context of a crisis of trust in communication between government agencies, social institutions and the population, the introduction of technically capacious solutions becomes a factor in discrediting major areas of state policy. In this case, the goals of vaccination as protection of the population from the epidemic threat are compromised. The use of high-tech technologies problematizes the issue of localization of coercive power and power resources, which are legally a state monopoly, and contributes to the formation of new social splits and the emergence of discriminated groups. Finally, the use of QR codes raises the question of the integrity of the legal space of the state system and requires solutions in the field of separation of powers between public authorities. The problematic aspects not taken into account during the implementation make a decisive contribution to the adoption of new regulatory methods by the public, which keeps the search for the necessary legal regulators relevant.