A software developer explains that a longstanding joke domain, verygoodsoftwarenotvirus.ru, is about to slip out of their control because recent Russian rules require registrants to demonstrate a local connection. Renewal was blocked when a $199.99 charge from 101Domain was declined by the developer’s payment service (an expired Privacy.com card), and the WHOIS now shows the registration as "UNVERIFIED" with paid-through 2026-11-10 and a free date of 2026-12-11. The developer links the practical effect to Federal Law 569‑ФЗ (signed 29.12.2025 and effective for this purpose 01.09.2026): without Russian ties - business, investment, residency - the domain cannot be revalidated, so it will become available to anyone who can meet the new requirements.
The piece traces why the .ru mattered: bought in 2014 while working as a condo security guard learning to code, it began as a gag to send friend Giovanni a binary labeled "not virus" and grew into a persistent online identity and GitHub handle. The blog now publishes to verygoodsoftwarenotvirus.dev as well, but when the .ru lapses the public proof of ownership will vanish and likely be replaced with ads or squatting. A Wayback snapshot from 2024 preserves the original, and the author feels amused and a little wistful that a cheap eight-dollar joke lasted twelve years.
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