# Censorship detected in RU

**Country:** 🇷🇺 Russia (RU)
**Date:** 2026-08-23
**Type:** Censorship
**Severity:** CRITICAL
**Status:** suspected

## Summary

None

## Metrics

- Confidence: 89%
- Measurements: 18
- Anomaly Rate: 98.4%

## Evidence

- **OONI** (measurement): OONI signal: 463/538 measurements anomalous (86.1%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 84%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=signal&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI whatsapp: 297/365 measurements anomalous (81.4%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 83%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=whatsapp&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI telegram: 321/361 measurements anomalous (88.9%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 86%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=telegram&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI facebook_messenger: 309/607 measurements anomalous (50.9%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 70%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=facebook_messenger&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI tor: 362/376 measurements anomalous (96.3%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 89%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=tor&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI signal: 463/558 measurements anomalous (83.0%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 83%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=signal&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI whatsapp: 304/387 measurements anomalous (78.6%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 81%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=whatsapp&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI telegram: 306/365 measurements anomalous (83.8%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 84%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=telegram&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI tor: 343/355 measurements anomalous (96.6%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 89%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=tor&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI signal: 460/529 measurements anomalous (87.0%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 85%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=signal&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI whatsapp: 311/374 measurements anomalous (83.2%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 83%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=whatsapp&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI telegram: 325/351 measurements anomalous (92.6%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 87%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=telegram&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI facebook_messenger: 330/625 measurements anomalous (52.8%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 71%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=facebook_messenger&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI tor: 332/341 measurements anomalous (97.4%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 89%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=tor&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI signal: 388/445 measurements anomalous (87.2%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 85%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=signal&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI whatsapp: 278/325 measurements anomalous (85.5%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 84%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=whatsapp&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI telegram: 278/312 measurements anomalous (89.1%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 86%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=telegram&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **OONI** (measurement): OONI tor: 314/319 measurements anomalous (98.4%)
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 89%
  - [OONI Explorer (independently verifiable)](https://explorer.ooni.org/search?probe_cc=RU&test_name=tor&since=2026-08-23&until=2026-08-24&only=anomalies)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 255/255 probes anomalous (100.0%) for bbc.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 106/106 probes anomalous (100.0%) for chat.openai.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 97/97 probes anomalous (100.0%) for chatgpt.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 102/102 probes anomalous (100.0%) for claude.ai
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 242/242 probes anomalous (100.0%) for facebook.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 114/114 probes anomalous (100.0%) for gemini.google.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 112/112 probes anomalous (100.0%) for getlantern.org
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - 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: 2026-08-23
  - 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 huggingface.co
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 268/268 probes anomalous (100.0%) for instagram.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 258/258 probes anomalous (100.0%) for medium.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - 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: 2026-08-23
  - 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 openai.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 253/253 probes anomalous (100.0%) for protonvpn.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 241/241 probes anomalous (100.0%) for psiphon.ca
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - 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: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 109/109 probes anomalous (100.0%) for signal.org
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 111/111 probes anomalous (100.0%) for substack.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 106/106 probes anomalous (100.0%) for telegram.org
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - 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: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 404/404 probes anomalous (100.0%) for tiktok.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - 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: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 298/298 probes anomalous (100.0%) for twitter.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 298/298 probes anomalous (100.0%) for whatsapp.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - Confidence: 90%
  - [CensoredPlanet raw-data portal (no per-measurement permalink)](https://data.censoredplanet.org)
- **CENSOREDPLANET** (dns-probe): DNS blocking detected: 308/308 probes anomalous (100.0%) for youtube.com
  - Observed: 2026-08-23
  - 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-2026-3046]. Retrieved from https://voidly.ai/incident/RU-2026-3046

---
*Report generated by Voidly Research on 2026-08-24*
*Data licensed under CC BY 4.0*
*Incident ID: RU-2026-3046*
*Permalink: https://voidly.ai/incident/RU-2026-3046*