Cash was only means of payment in Russia for a day due to VPN blocking, Telegram founder says

Billionaire and Telegram founder Pavel Durov said on Saturday that Russia's attempt to block virtual private networks (VPNs) had caused problems with the domestic payment system, adding that tens of millions of Russians are resisting digital control.

Source: Durov on Telegram

Details: Russia has repeatedly blocked mobile internet access and granted broad powers to shut down mass communication tools while also blocking messengers and VPN services.

A technical problem that occurred on Friday and has not yet been fully explained by the authorities caused chaos for some customers, forcing the Moscow metro to allow passengers to pass through turnstiles without payment and a regional zoo to ask visitors to pay in cash.

"Welcome back to the Digital Resistance, my Russian brothers and sisters. The entire nation is now mobilised to bypass these absurd restrictions," Durov wrote.

Russian officials say restrictions on VPNs and messengers such as WhatsApp and Telegram are necessary for security, as Moscow faces strikes deep inside Russia from Ukraine.

Russia is attempting to fully block Telegram. Russian officials have claimed that Telegram was infiltrated by the intelligence services of Ukraine and NATO member states and that this resulted in Russian soldiers being killed.

Background:

• On 3 April, clients of several Russian banks complained en masse about problems with payments, transfers and access to online services.
• The disruption affected Sberbank, VTB, T-Bank, Ozon Bank and several other financial institutions.

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