Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) will gain a new tool to monitor Russian users of cryptocurrency services under a draft directive from Russia’s Central Bank. Documents the regulator in late October clarify how the directive would work.

The draft is essentially a detailed set of instructions for developers building the server side of a new SORM system. SORM is a Russian acronym for a system of technical tools used in law enforcement surveillance and investigations. Russian authorities use the technology to access user data.

A SORM system consists of a server with specialized software and a dedicated communications line connected directly to FSB equipment. The server has access to a company’s databases…