Publication date: 08 Aug 2022

Russia has become one of the world leaders in downloads* of VPN services. In the first three weeks of July 2022, VPN services in Russia were downloaded more than 12 million times. 

At the same time, according to AppMagic (based on an analysis of the mobile application market), the Russian Federation is in second place in the global ranking, with India in first place for the number of downloads.  Other countries where VPNs are important include Pakistan, Indonesia and the US.

*One download refers to the installation of a program on one device, meaning that a single user can make multiple downloads. AppMagic focuses on the Lifetime Downloads metric, which stands for the cumulative number of downloads from app shops. 

For comparison, in July 2021 Russia was in 15th place (2.7 million downloads) and in January 2022 it was 2 million downloads and 16th in the ranking. Thus, in six months the popularity of vpn in Russia has increased 6-fold.

What is a VPN?

VPN stands for Virtual Private Network. This technology allows you to create another connection over the existing Internet network. There are different types of VPNs, but they all do the same thing: they encrypt information and connect the user through a chain of different servers located in different countries. In this way, a VPN allows you to get “anonymity on the net” and access to restricted sites.  

• The history of VPNs in Russia: how it all began 

Another alternative that allows access to the necessary information is the proxy network technology.  It also allows you to spoof a user’s IP address and go to a blocked site.  These services prevent users’ personal data from being secretly collected, but the information transmitted is not encrypted.  That is why it is important to use the best and most reliable proxy services – get your bonus with 3SNET promo codes when you sign up.

Is VPN downloading allowed in Russia? 

According to Roskomnadzor, the Russian law “On Communications” explicitly recognises all means of bypassing unlawful content blocking as a threat. In line with this, the Public Communication Network Monitoring and Management Center is taking measures to restrict VPN services that violate Russian law from operating in Russia. As a reminder, in early July, Roskomnadzor blocked popular vpn-services Browsec, Proxy Master, Melon, Winscribe, Red Cat and Proton. 

However, experts point out that Russian law does not provide for any administrative or criminal liability for citizens wishing to download or use such services. 

Senator Andrey Klishas was the first to react to the growing popularity of VPNs and the questions that have arisen in this regard. According to him, “there is no liability for the use of VPNs and its introduction is not discussed”.

In August 2022, Stanislav Kudzh, the rector of the RTU MIREA, made a proposal: all VPN applications offered through Russian shops must be marked “18+”. They must also be labelled “Contains information security threats”, i.e., warn of the potential threat of transferring user data to a third party.

Even earlier, State Duma deputy Maria Butina expressed her opinion. In a conversation she said it was necessary to “put in jail” parents whose children use services to bypass blocking. She was referring to the possible blocking of YouTube, an alternative to which the deputy suggested books. Butina later clarified that it was more about the responsibility of parents to raise their children, and there were no plans to create any corresponding bills. 

• Google has been imposing its own restrictions on the use of VPN services since November 1, 2022. The applications that are distributed via Google Play are prohibited from manipulating traffic and collecting personal data from users without their consent.

Which free VPNs are popular in Russia? 

According to AppMagic, the most popular VPN services for Russians had a Lifetime Downloads rate of:  

• VPN – Super Unlimited Proxy – 14.36 million downloads; 
• Secure VPN – Safer Internet – 12.08 million; 
• VPN Proxy Master – Safer Vpn – 10.8 million; 
• 1.1.1.1: Faster & Safer Internet – 10.8 million;
• Turbo VPN – Secure VPN Proxy 12.8 million. 

 Experts point to the blocking of popular resources (the TOR browser, Twitter, as well as Facebook and Instagram, which are banned in Russia) and restrictions on the operation of other VPN services as the main reasons for the growing popularity of VPNs in Russia. This is also confirmed by Google Trends data, which recorded a surge of interest in VPNs in March 2022.