On Friday, a wave of disruptions swept through the Signal messaging app, impacting hundreds of users across Russia. This secure communications platform, favored by nearly a million Russians for its encryption capabilities, faced over 1,500 complaints, predominantly from residents in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
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Interestingly, users discovered that the app functioned seamlessly when accessed through a VPN or when utilizing its built-in censorship bypass mode. Mikhail Klimarev, a prominent figure behind the Telegram channel “For Telecom,” suggested that these issues point to a deliberate blocking of the messenger within Russia, rather than a technical malfunction on Signal’s part.
Attempts to reach Signal for a comment on the situation went unanswered, as did inquiries directed at Roskomnadzor, the Russian internet regulatory authority. Reports from three individuals in Moscow and the Krasnodar region indicated that creating a new Signal account was impossible without a VPN, as the app displayed a “Server Error” message when users tried to register with their mobile numbers.
Klimarev noted that this incident marks a significant first attempt to obstruct the messenger service in Russia, highlighting the ongoing tensions surrounding digital communication and censorship in the region.
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