Three VPN firms that receive funding through a US government program have seen significant growth in users in Russia since the February 24 invasion of Ukraine, as Russians seek to evade bans on Western media and information the Kremlin deems 'fake'.
Between 2015 and 2021, the three VPNs received at least $US4.8 million in American funding, according to publicly available funding documents reviewed by Reuters.
The funding flows through the US Agency for Global Media — a federal agency that oversees US government-backed broadcasters, including Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Laura Cunningham, president of the OTF, said the organisation had increased its support to the three VPNs because:
Censorship evasion tools, including the VPNs, backed by OTF averaged more than 4 million users last month in Russia, Ms Cunningham added.