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Turkish citizens take to VPN to prevent government crackdown

It seemed clear from yesterday's rants by Turkish PM  Recep Tayyip Erdogan, that he's not a big fan of the internet and specifically social networks. In the past, countries undergoing heavy civilian protests have attempted to crack down on internet usage because it helps protesters organise and get the word out on any government atrocities – something our readers have been discussing on Facebook. In an effort to circumvent any planned IP blocks or internet blackouts, Turkish citizens have begun taking out subscriptions to VPN services in droves, ensuring that their internet access remain as unimpeded and anonymous as possible.

One company called AnchorFree said in a discussion with Wired, that it had received as much as a 1,000 per cent increase in sales of its Hotspot Shield VPN software during the peak of the protests. Mobile VPN services have also increased exponentially. Not all these sales came from Turkey and not all of them were to prevent government intervention in internet access, but the coincidence is too obvious to not be equatable.

Anyone wishing to get hold of a VPN service, there are plenty of affordable ones out there. However, twitter accounts representing the hacktivist movement, Anonymous, have been tweeting out free access to some services, so it's worth keeping an eye on them too.

YourAnonNews
AnonymousIRC

Representatives of the group also took down Turkish government websites over the weekend and are regularly tweeting up to date pictures and information on the escalating events in the country.

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A Turkish protest image posted by Anonymous in the past ten minutes

The recent furor in Turkey began with people protesting the creation of a new shopping centre in Istanbul (where there are many already), which would have seen a park demolished. However, the aggressive tactics of the police, who used water cannons and tear gas (some reports suggest tear gas was added to the water as well) on peaceful protestors, has turned most demonstrations into anti-government, instead of anti-mall protests. There have also been videos of police brutality circling around online.

KitGuru Says: If any of our readers are in Turkey at the moment, citizens or otherwise: be safe. Also, know that you can get in touch with us if you have any information on the ongoing demonstrations there.

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8 comments

  1. Christopher Trotter

    VPN has been very useful to many. In a way it helps people expose atrocities people are experiencing in our society https://www.bestvpnservicemag.com/best-vpn-for-turkey/

  2. VPN services produce a layer of security over the Internet that creates managing secure transactions possible. This is why its so prominent with businesses. Quite frequently, VPN services are made using by workers positioned in distant locations or who’re temporarily unemployed to accessibility resources over a private LAN. VPN services are usually paid ones. There are even free services that offer anonymity, which can be a component of VPN services. While VPN services do anonymize Internet surfing for your user, the free services get their adherents. https://www.fipe.net/

  3. Yup, there are plenty of affordable VPNs out there. Most of the countries trying to block VPN services such as Turkey, China, Russia etc but no one can have successfully blocked all VPN.

  4. VPN shouldn’t be banned, it is a necessary part of our life, I am using vpnranks.com and their vpns are working fine in all cities of turkey.

  5. VPN shouldn’t be banned, it is a necessary part of our life, I am using vpnranks.com and their vpns are working fine in all cities of turkey.

  6. Turkey is famous for limiting citizens’ freedom. Lot’s of internet resources get blocked due to “unwanted” content and VPN remains the best way to get around such restrictions. Personally I’m using ExpressVPN and fully satisfied with its’ service http://www.best-vpn.net/expressvpn-review/

  7. Guys I am using Ivacy VPN and I don’t agree with VPN crackdown because it is only single software which secure me from hackers otherwise it is impossible for me to access my google drive and download, upload data which is my daily basis work.

  8. VPNs which you need the most for you security, privacy and streaming purpose. There are many VPNs who are providing best services in affordable prices. All we need a Secure VPN for our privacy and security in good prices.