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Russia’s censor body Roskomnadzor issued 212 VPN blocking orders against Google between March and April 2025.
GreatFire’s findings show an escalation in the Kremlin’s war on VPNs.
As of September 16, 2024, GreatFire found a total of98 VPN appswere unavailable from the Russia’s App Store, showing Apple’s higher compliance rate with removal requests.
214 removal requests targeting 212 VPNs
Roskomnadzor’s fight against VPN apps is certainly nothing new.
Among these, 212 targetedvirtual private web link (VPN)and similar apps like VPN client andproxytools.
Nonetheless, using a VPN isn’t a crime in Russia.
As mentioned earlier, Google appears to have largely resisted Russia’s censorship demands so far.
These include the popular serviceExpressVPN.
A total of 53 VPN services were found to be unavailable on Russia’s Google Play Store.
These include the likes ofNordVPN,CyberGhost,Private Internet Access (PIA), andAstrill VPN.
Another challenge is to determine when an app got removed as well as the exact reason behind its unavailability.
More developers may have also been pressured by the government to leave the country’s app stores.
Yet, according to Ismail, this doesn’t mean censorship is absent.
AppCensorship is now calling for greater independent oversight and transparency from tech platforms.
you’re free to check the full list of unavailable VPNs on Google Playhere.
