Hundreds of Signal users in Russia reported problems with the secure messaging app on Friday. The app, used by nearly a million Russians for encrypted messages, has been the subject of more than 1,500 court cases in cities including Moscow and St. Petersburg, according to web services tracking sites.
Users have reported that the app works normally when accessed through a VPN or through the built-in censorship bypass mode, suggesting that the challenges were not due to technical issues. “This indicates exactly a blocking of messages in Russia and not a technical challenge in the component. Signal,” said Mikhail Klimarev of the Telegram channel “For Telecom”. Signal and Russian web watchdog Roskomnadzor did not respond promptly to requests for comment.
Additionally, logging into a new account on Signal without a VPN was highly unlikely, and users in Moscow and the Krasnodar region reported “Server Error” messages when entering mobile numbers. Klimarev noted that this was the first attempt to block the messenger in Russia.
(With agencies. )