How to watch BBC News in Russia
Thanks to Stella Jacob and Ye Jinghan on Unsplash
If you live in a nation that has suddenly banned BBC news, blocked the sites you want to visit and/or made it dangerous to safely speak your mind, then you may want to begin using these three applications – a browser, message app, and VPN.
Together, they should let you securely access the sites you want to see and speak freely with those you want to speak to in relative security. Though you should never feel complacent with tech.
Use the Tor browser
Tor is a legend of a web browser that’s packed with protections that make for a highly secure browsing experience, particularly if also used with a VPN such as Psiphon (below).
Even without a VPN it does good work, as all anyone monitoring your browsing habits should learn is that you are using Tor. It also masks device and system information to make it hard for website rascals to fingerprint you.
Tor Browser isolates each website you visit so third-party trackers and ads can’t follow you. And any cookies automatically clear when you’re done browsing, along with your browsing history. Finally, traffic is relayed and encrypted three times as it passes over the network.
The result? You should be able to access websites that are otherwise blocked.
You can download this free solution here.
It may be time to use Psiphon as a VPN
It’s essential to use a VPN. Free to use and available on every platform, Psiphon is an open source VPN that’s particularly designed to help you access online content and services, even if they are blocked where you are.
It works on a secure network of constantly changing servers and uses a range of technologies to sidestep blocking. It also offers a subscription-based option, though this may be an unwise investment in some places.
The company is based in Canada and has over 3 million users.
You can get it here. The developers claim independent research identified no security flaws in the code.
Advice on accessing BBC News pic.twitter.com/QXrjljM5sJ
— BBC Press Office (@bbcpress) March 4, 2022
The BBC recommends both Psiphon and the Tor Browser (or Onion browser for iPhones) as ways to access BBC News. The broadcaster offers a dedicated BBC site at a specific URL for Tor, which will only work with that browser.
This is the URL, which will not function outside Tor, which is why it needs to be copied and pasted:
https://www.bbcnewsd73hkzno2ini43t4gblxvycyac5aw4gnv7t2rccijh7745uqd.onion/
— BBC News Press Team (@BBCNewsPR) March 4, 2022
Make use of Signal for messaging
Far more secure than Telegram, Signal is a cross platform app with strong end-to-end encryption. It also supports encrypted group chats and has the capacity to automatically delete messages. You can set the latter to delete messages just 10 seconds after they are read. Messages are not stored on any server, so once they’re gone, they’re gone. When it comes to images, Signal has a built-in face blurring tool. It can also handle SMS, video, voice calls, group chats, and file sharing. You will need to create a temporary phone number to set up your Signal account. (Another secure alternative is Wickr, which few use today). Get Signal here.
There is another messaging app called Briar. This may be even more secure than Signal, but sadly does not work on Apple devices, which seems a shame. You’ll find more information about it right here.
Got more apps you think may help people living in repressive regimes? Please drop us a line.
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