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In 2024, increasingly more people worldwide turned to VPN apps to bypass internet censorship and social media blocks.
Proton VPNalone recorded a spike in usage across 119 countries.
Latin America has been the area with the most amount of spikes in Proton VPN sign-ups during 2024. This results were mainly driven as response to internet restrictions in Venezuela and Brazil.
VPNs give everyday citizens the ability to fight back against this encroaching censorship."
Why did people turn to VPNs in 2024?
“Our teams worked tirelessly to keep the internet lights on.”
Latin America has been the area with the most amount of spikes in Proton VPN sign-ups during 2024. This results were mainly driven as response to internet restrictions in Venezuela and Brazil.
At the core of Proton’s election support initiative was Proton’s very own Smart Routing technology.
Not all Proton VPN spikes that occurred throughout the year were linked to election campaigns, though.
At that time, Proton recorded a spike in usage of 1840% above normal levels.
A change in attitude
2024 was also characterized by a change in attitude among VPN users.
This happened, for example, in Turkey, Senegal, and Mozambique.
“Trying to scare citizens away from using VPNs,” said Peterson.
What’s at stake for internet freedom in 2025?
It’s with this in mind that Proton invests in censorship-resistant technologies.
