In 2024, more and more extra individuals worldwide turned to VPN apps to bypass web censorship and social media blocks.
Proton VPN alone recorded a spike in utilization throughout 119 international locations. These embody six international locations with at the very least one spike in signups of over 5,000% above baseline and 4 with at the very least one spike in signups of over 10,000%.
One of many best VPN suppliers in the marketplace, Proton has closely invested within the battle in opposition to web censorship through the years, making it one of the crucial standard circumvention instruments for customers battling in opposition to web restrictions.
Reflecting on the findings from the corporate’s end-of-the-year 2024 report, David Peterson, Proton VPN’s Normal Supervisor, mentioned: “Social media blocks and web blackouts have sadly grow to be normalized and at the moment are considered as merely one other device governments can flip to. VPNs give on a regular basis residents the flexibility to battle again in opposition to this encroaching censorship.”
Why did individuals flip to VPNs in 2024?
With 64 international locations internationally internet hosting elections final 12 months, it is no shock that the majority web censorship and VPN utilization spikes occurred round these occasions.
These embody Senegal, as authorities disrupted the web amid protests over postponed elections in February, and Mauritius, the place the social media shutdown ahead of the big day in November triggered Proton VPN’s largest spike amounting to 182,890% enhance in signups inside 48 hours, but additionally Mozambique, Pakistan, and Venezuela.
Our groups labored tirelessly to maintain the web lights on
Based on Peterson, the Venezuela case is among the most putting examples. In an try to clamp down on protests contesting the election outcomes, President Maduro blocked X and Sign, whereas even calling for a boycott of WhatsApp. Entry to the Proton VPN web site was additionally restricted because the virtual private network (VPN) app grew to become a “lifeline for a lot of Venezuelans.”
“We noticed an unprecedented demand, and Proton VPN grew to become essentially the most downloaded app within the nation on each the Google Play and Apple App shops,” Peterson advised TechRadar, explaining that the workforce needed to develop server capability to assist individuals in Venezuela and guarantee servers weren’t overloaded. “Our groups labored tirelessly to maintain the web lights on.”
Proton VPN even launched its election support initiative in March to supply a free community of native anti-censorship servers to all customers logging in from at-risk international locations two weeks earlier than and after the large day. On the core of Proton’s election help initiative was Proton’s very personal Good Routing expertise. This allowed the supplier to supply native protection in international locations the place servers can’t be bodily put in because of the delicate nature of the situation.
As per Proton’s knowledge, greater than 1,000,000 individuals worldwide made use of those servers to avoid censorship and entry free and honest web within the lead-up to elections.
Not all Proton VPN spikes that occurred all year long have been linked to election campaigns, although. As Proton’s workforce places it, “every kind of crises can persuade the federal government to censor the web.”
Folks in Brazil turned en masse to VPNs, for instance, to evade the X ban regardless of the danger of being fined as much as $9,000 a day. At the moment, Proton recorded a spike in utilization of 1840% above regular ranges.
VPN usage skyrocketed in New Caledonia, too, as residents tried to bypass the TikTok ban imposed throughout anti-government protests. Crucially, this case represents the very first time a Western democracy (France) has resorted to a social media shutdown to placate dissent.
Pakistan, Kenya, Bangladesh, Turkey, Myanmar, Kyrgyzstan, and even Spain are different international locations the place individuals flocked to Proton VPN in 2024 meaning to bypass elevated censorship.
A change in perspective
2024 was additionally characterised by a change in perspective amongst VPN customers.
As a substitute of seeing short-term spikes following authorities censorship or web blocks, Peterson explains, the workforce recorded extra customers signing up upfront of defining occasions like nationwide elections.
Not solely that, however individuals have been additionally increasingly eager to proceed utilizing VPN apps even after short-term blocks have been lifted, most likely in an try to guard themselves in opposition to potential future web blocks. This occurred, for instance, in Turkey, Senegal, and Mozambique.
Do you know?
In 2024, Proton VPN additionally determined to double down on its fight against online censorship by integrating new instruments and increasing present censorship-resistant expertise. Amongst these, Visitor mode on Android – which permits customers to log in with out creating an account – had essentially the most affect, dramatically rising the variety of individuals utilizing its Android VPN app.
“Individuals are additionally, sadly, getting accustomed to authoritarian regimes’ heavy hand and know alternative routes to obtain our apps within the circumstances the place app shops are blocked,” mentioned Peterson.
Whereas individuals are getting higher and higher at discovering methods to bypass on-line restrictions, governments are additionally transferring past simply blocking entry to sure web sites.
For instance, authorities could block entry to different DNS companies in addition to try to dam entry to VPNs themselves. The latter can happen by forcing app shops to take away the VPN apps (like in Russia, the place over 60 VPN apps disappeared from the native Apple App Retailer final 12 months), blocking the VPN web sites straight (like in Venezuela), or utilizing superior applied sciences with network-level blocking of VPNs, similar to these utilized in Iran, Russia, China, Myanmar, and, most lately, in Belarus.
The intention? “Attempting to scare residents away from utilizing VPNs,” mentioned Peterson.
What’s at stake for web freedom in 2025?
With web censorship steadily advancing in each attain and methods, specialists anticipate this pattern to proceed in 2025 as effectively.
“Social media blocks and web blackouts are sadly changing into extra normalized, and it is not simply the protect of authoritarian regimes – simply final 12 months we noticed blocks in Spain, and within the French territory of New Caledonia,” Peterson advised Techradar.
It is with this in thoughts that Proton invests in censorship-resistant applied sciences. Again in August, in reality, the supplier added help for its Stealth VPN protocol, which is designed to bypass subtle authorities censorship additionally for Home windows. It additionally launched a brand new Discreet Icon characteristic for its Android app to permit customers to customise the app’s icon and title to make it appear like one other unrelated cellphone software.
“Whereas our work typically makes headlines, it is typically the tasks we will not speak about, as it will put our customers in peril, that we’re essentially the most pleased with,” mentioned once more Peterson. “To our group the world over, we simply need to say that wherever there may be persistent web censorship, we’re working and can maintain working to offer an answer.”
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