Russian internet hit by unexplained behaviour
Technology
YouTube also went down as users found themselves able to access Meta platforms for the first time
(Web Desk) - The internet in Russia has been hit by odd changes after apps unexpectedly went on and offline.
Telegram, the country’s most popular messaging app, went down on Tuesday, along with other platforms such as YouTube and social media site Vkontakte.
At the same time, Instagram and Facebook users found they were able to get to those sites for the first time in two years.
The monitoring centre for Russia‘s public communications network said on Tuesday its specialists had recorded a “massive failure” of Telegram, though it was not immediately clear why. Telegram did not reply to a request for comment.
“The work of Telegram messenger and a number of other services in Russia is already being restored,” Russia‘s digital ministry said in a statement, adding that there had also been failures of the app outside Russia.
“We are working to establish the cause of the incident,” it said. “As for Russian telecom operators, their networks are operating normally.”
Reuters correspondents in Moscow noted outages of Telegram, YouTube and Vkontakte for around 90 minutes.
Soon after the outage, several previously blocked social media apps including Instagram and Facebook suddenly became available in Russia on Tuesday, according to Reuters reporters in Moscow.
