Russian censorship is getting stricter – and Tor needs your help
The Tor Browser is calling on volunteers within the Internet community who are willing to support the fight against stricter Russian censorship.
The team aims to deploy 200 new WebTunnel bridges by the end of December 2024, “to open secure access to users in Russia,” the team wrote in a blog post.
A Tor bridge is a non-public server run by volunteers that helps users bypass censorship and connect to the Tor network.
WebTunnel, the provider explains, is a new type of bridge designed to blend in with other web traffic and stay under the radar of censors, avoiding blockages. This is done by emulating encrypted web traffic (HTTPS) as it passes through a web server with a valid SSL/TLS certificate.
We’re calling on the Tor and internet freedom community to help us scale WebTunnel bridges. If you’ve ever thought about building a Tor Bridge, now is the time. Our goal is to deploy 200 new WebTunnel bridges by the end of December (2024) to open secure access for users…November 28, 2024
Although the number of active WebTunnel bridges (now 143) has more than doubled since its launch in March, it is still not enough to meet the rising demand in the country.
Tor’s urgent appeal follows an escalation of Russian censorship efforts targeting access to Tor – including its built-in censorship bypass features such as obfs4 connections and Snowflake – and other circumvention tools, such as some of the best VPN apps on the market.
According to the latest data, almost 200 VPN services have been blocked in Russia at the time of writing. Between July and September alone, around 60 VPN apps quietly disappeared from the Apple App Store in the country, bringing the total of unavailable applications on the Big Tech giant’s official store to 98.
Running a Tor WebTunnel bridge
Unredacted, a nonprofit organization that provides free and open services to circumvent censorship and increase privacy online, announced its plans to deploy 10 new WebTunnel bridges just a day after Tor issued its own appeal for help on November 28.
Tor’s campaign runs until March 2025 and calls for even more volunteers to build and operate new Web tunnel bridges. In addition to helping people in Russia enjoy free and secure internet, you will receive a Tor t-shirt if you decide to walk five or more bridges during this period.
Below are the technical requirements to participate in the initiative:
- Run one WebTunnel per IPv4. Multiple subdomains or single domains are also accepted.
- You must provide a valid email address as contact details.
- Keep your bridges active and functional for at least 12 months.
- Keep your bridges working almost 24/7.
- Do not host your bridges with Hetzner.
Running a Tor bridge requires some IT skills, but don’t worry: Tor has one WebTunnel Guide to assist you with the configuration process.
