The Opera VPN service, which helps bypass blocks and maintain privacy on the Internet, will stop working on iOS and Android.
April 13 - after the decision to block the Telegram messenger Opera VPN topped the list of the most popular requests from users of the Russian App Store.
But a day later, Opera Software announced that the Opera VPN application had stopped working with April 30.
The reasons why the decision to close were not specified, and one can only speculate whether there is a connection with the latest events around Telegram. According to some assumptions, the developers of Opera VPN are afraid to provide a low-quality service to the influx of users.
Instead of Opera VPN, the developers recommend that users switch to the paid service SurfEasy. It protects security when using Wi-Fi hotspots, prevents ad tracking, and encrypts all browser data. The developers promise an annual subscription with an 80 percent discount. To switch, all you need to do is update the Opera VPN app for iOS and Android to the latest version. Opera Gold account holders will be able to use the service for free for the first year. It is currently available on Windows, macOS, iOS and Android. At the same time, the Opera browser from the company of the same name has a built-in VPN. It will probably continue to work.
Telegram founder Pavel Durov has already promised to think through built-in methods for bypassing blocking, but warned that without VPN services, the stable operation of the messenger is not guaranteed.
Even on the day of the announcement of the court decision for the Telegram messenger, Vladimir Krupennikov, deputy chairman of the Duma Committee on Information Policy, Information Technologies and Communications, told RIA Novosti that in connection with the blocking of the Telegram messenger, Telegram will analyze the need to legally exclude the use of VPN services, RIA Novosti reports.
Recall that the Law bans the use of VPN services for bypassing blocking of prohibited sites has been in effect in Russia since November 1, 2017, while VPN services themselves are not banned.
The OSCE criticized the blocking of Telegram in the Russian Federation. Earlier, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media called for a review of the court decision regarding Telegram and the creation of conditions in the Russian Federation for a free and independent information space.. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe is concerned about the court ruling to block the messenger in Russia. The corresponding statement was posted on the organization’s website on Friday, April 13.
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