What VPN services still work in Russia

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VPN services blocked for the second year

The situation with Surfshark is not the first such case: for example, in June 2022, Proton VPN was blocked. Roskomnadzor explained this by the fact that "the means of bypassing the blocking of illegal content are recognized as a threat." For the first time, Russian authorities blocked several VPN services in June 2021, an opportunity they got after telecom operators installed the necessary software as part of the “sovereign internet” law. But since the start of the war in Ukraine, when access to Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and a host of other sites, including Kholod, was restricted, Russia has risen from 16th to second place in the ranking of countries in terms of the number of VPN app downloads. Demand for them has increased several times.

So far, there is no liability for the use of VPN services in Russia. Even if you are already using a trusted VPN, we recommend choosing a backup in case the main one is blocked.

What is a VPN?

VPN - Virtual Private Network - is an encrypted channel that allows you to connect to the Internet, as if from another country. For this, a server is rented outside of Russia (on its own or through VPN services), a connection is established with it using a special program, and you can access the Internet bypassing blocking. “Imagine that you have a suburban area with a blank fence. Wherever you are inside the site, an external observer sees only that you enter and exit through the gate, everything else is hidden for him, explains Vladimir Lomov from the Greenhouse of Social Technologies. “VPN is the same, it’s just that the gates are outside of Russia.”

Free ways to bypass blocking

As the technical director of Roskomsvoboda ( a public organization that protects the digital rights of Russians ) Stanislav Shakirov explains, there are no free, secure and unlimited VPN services at the same time. “One user costs the service half a dollar-dollar. If we're talking about a VPN for 100k people, someone has to pay $50k a month. What is the purpose of the service to engage in such charity? he says.

Free VPNs monetize their users in many ways: they can steal their data, intercept traffic, insert annoying ads.

Of the safe ways to bypass blocking, experts recommend the following:

• Psiphon is a VPN designed, unlike most such services, primarily to bypass Internet censorship rather than encrypt communication. Works on Windows, Android, iOS, and on MacOS only on MacBooks with M1 processors ;
• Censor Tracker is a free extension for Chrome and Firefox browsers from Roskomsvoboda. The extension bypasses blocking and detects sites that store your information and can transfer it to authorities
• Tor is a browser that provides anonymity and access to blocked sites.

Paid ways to bypass blocking

• Amnesia VPN and Outline - with their help you can rent your own VPN server abroad. This will take time to set up, but the big plus is that Roskomnadzor will not know about your VPN and will not be able to block it;
• Red Shield VPN - up to 10 devices are available for one subscription, Russian cards are accepted for payment, and there are Russian servers for those who have left Russia and need access to Russian sites. Pricing plans start at $2.74 per month. This price will be when paying for a two-year tariff with a 53% discount using the VPNLOVE promotional code from Roskomsvoboda (that is, you will pay $65.76 for two years);
• TrustZone - up to five devices, you can pay with Russian cards, using the VPNLOVE10 promotional code, an 81% discount on a three-year tariff - the total payment amount is 63.99 euros;
• BlancVPN - unlimited number of devices, payment by Russian cards is possible, there are Russian servers. From 4 euros per month, three days for free with the promo code VPNLOVE;
• PaperVPN is a service from the publication Paper. Tariffs from 75 rubles per month, there are both European and Russian servers. Traffic is limited: from 150 to 250 gigabytes per month - this is enough even to download at least a dozen films in good quality.

And these services can no longer be used in Russia

On September 3, 2021, Roskomnadzor blocked Hola!VPN, ExpressVPN, KeepSolid VPN Unlimited, Nord VPN, Speedify VPN, IPVanish VPN.

Roskomsvoboda still recommends Proton VPN, ExpressVPN and Nord VPN: although they have been blocked, they regularly add new servers, and through technical support you can get IP addresses of non-public servers that Roskomnadzor has not reached.

To make sure you can read blocked sites, don't use just one VPN service. Download them in advance and try to set up as many different ones as possible: if one is banned, the other will insure. Information about VPNs still available in Russia can be tracked here .