# Censorship detected in RU

**Country:** 🇷🇺 Russia (RU)
**Date:** 2026-08-16
**Type:** Censorship
**Severity:** CRITICAL
**Status:** suspected

## Summary

None

## Metrics

- Confidence: 89%
- Measurements: 16
- Anomaly Rate: 97.5%

## Evidence

- **OONI** (measurement): OONI signal: 407/507 measurements anomalous (80.3%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 82%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=signal&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI whatsapp: 277/347 measurements anomalous (79.8%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 82%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=whatsapp&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI telegram: 278/347 measurements anomalous (80.1%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 82%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=telegram&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI tor: 338/350 measurements anomalous (96.6%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 89%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=tor&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI signal: 462/553 measurements anomalous (83.5%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 83%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=signal&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI whatsapp: 317/383 measurements anomalous (82.8%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 83%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=whatsapp&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI telegram: 320/376 measurements anomalous (85.1%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 84%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=telegram&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI tor: 382/392 measurements anomalous (97.4%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 89%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=tor&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI signal: 448/559 measurements anomalous (80.1%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 82%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=signal&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI whatsapp: 301/381 measurements anomalous (79.0%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 82%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=whatsapp&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI telegram: 307/370 measurements anomalous (83.0%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 83%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=telegram&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI tor: 357/369 measurements anomalous (96.7%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 89%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=tor&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI signal: 347/421 measurements anomalous (82.4%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 83%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=signal&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI whatsapp: 247/302 measurements anomalous (81.8%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 83%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=whatsapp&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI telegram: 246/310 measurements anomalous (79.4%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 82%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=telegram&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI tor: 306/314 measurements anomalous (97.5%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 89%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=tor&since=2026-08-16&until=2026-08-17&only=anomalies)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 248/248 probes anomalous (100.0%) for bbc.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 107/107 probes anomalous (100.0%) for chat.openai.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 95/95 probes anomalous (100.0%) for chatgpt.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 104/104 probes anomalous (100.0%) for claude.ai
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 226/226 probes anomalous (100.0%) for facebook.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 110/110 probes anomalous (100.0%) for gemini.google.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 113/113 probes anomalous (100.0%) for getlantern.org
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 64/64 probes anomalous (100.0%) for google.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 104/104 probes anomalous (100.0%) for huggingface.co
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 246/246 probes anomalous (100.0%) for instagram.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 243/243 probes anomalous (100.0%) for medium.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 110/110 probes anomalous (100.0%) for nytimes.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 105/105 probes anomalous (100.0%) for openai.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 248/248 probes anomalous (100.0%) for protonvpn.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 219/219 probes anomalous (100.0%) for psiphon.ca
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 87/87 probes anomalous (100.0%) for reddit.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 108/108 probes anomalous (100.0%) for signal.org
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 110/110 probes anomalous (100.0%) for substack.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 98/98 probes anomalous (100.0%) for telegram.org
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 110/110 probes anomalous (100.0%) for theguardian.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 368/368 probes anomalous (100.0%) for tiktok.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 113/113 probes anomalous (100.0%) for tumblr.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 284/284 probes anomalous (100.0%) for twitter.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 283/283 probes anomalous (100.0%) for whatsapp.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 281/281 probes anomalous (100.0%) for youtube.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-16
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)

## What we cannot say

- **Who caused it** — measurement data alone does not attribute the interference to any government, ISP, or other actor.
- **Intent** — anomalous or unreachable measurements indicate interference, not a stated motive or a deliberate-vs-incidental determination.
- **Which networks** — no specific ASN/ISP is identified for this incident.
- **The mechanism** — we cannot state whether this was DNS tampering, TLS/SNI reset, HTTP blockpage, throttling, or an infrastructure outage.
- **A confirmed duration** — we report the observation window, not a verified start/stop of any block.
- **Sub-national scope** — measurement is aggregated at the country level; we cannot localize to a province, city, or network segment.

## Data Sources

ooni, censoredplanet

## Citation

Voidly Research. (2026). Censorship detected in RU [RU-2026-3025]. Retrieved from https://voidly.ai/incident/RU-2026-3025

---
*Report generated by Voidly Research on 2026-08-17*
*Data licensed under CC BY 4.0*
*Incident ID: RU-2026-3025*
*Permalink: https://voidly.ai/incident/RU-2026-3025*