The Russian attempts to shut down internet content apparently only work to a limited extent. The country is far from the perfection and experience that China has – which is why the use of tools to circumvent censorship is on the rise. For example, Cloudflare reports that the use of smartphone apps that connect to Auen despite the existing blockages is increasing enormously. The 1.1.1.1 app released by Cloudflare is currently one of the most downloaded apps in Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store.
With the software, the company not only provides access to web content via the uncensored DNS service Cloudflares but has also integrated the so-called warp function, which creates a VPN tunnel through the Russian blockades. In particular, the VPN function was very rarely used in Russia in February. However, as the war started, user numbers skyrocketed, peaking in mid-March. However, this development did not go unanswered – since mid-March, there have been repeated attempts by the state to block the tool.
According to Cloudflare, statistics from the in-house DNS service also show that interest in Western press publications has increased significantly. The domains of various US newspapers are called up five times more often than before, but the number of calls for offers from Great Britain and France is also increasing strongly. However, no absolute figures are given here, so only a limited understanding of how many Internet users actually read foreign press that is not subject to Kremlin regulations.
To a not inconsiderable extent, however, the VPN connections can also be used to reach blocked lifestyle offers such as Instagram. However, this ultimately also means that users will have to deal with content that does not match the image of the Russian portrayal of events in Ukraine. However, this seems to have only a limited effect. There are repeated reports from users who are in contact with relatives in Russia, for example, according to which information that deviates from Moscow propaganda is given little credibility. Often there is also a real process of suppression, the aim of which is not to want to deal with the subject at all. Various studies are currently showing broad support for the attack on Ukraine.
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