- Access to social media platforms in Turkey has been restored after 42 hours of shutdown
- Proton VPN has recorded an increase of +1100% from March 19, 2025, the daily restrictions were enforced
- Many X accounts have then been blocked on the orders of the Turkish authorities
On March 21, 2025, the Turkish authorities abolished the ban on social media platforms after 42 hours were enforced. Still, the VPN use remains high as mass demonstrations continue.
Citizens began to turn to the best VPN apps to keep access to like X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Tiktok and WhatsApp from March 19, the daily restrictions were enforced. For example, Proton VPN registered an increase in registrations of +1100%.
As protests triggered the arrest of Ekrem ̇mamoğlu, the mayor of Istanbul and his opposition counterpart, continued, many X’s reports of opposition figures and independent news sites reportedly blocked on government orders.
Turkey VPN -Use Skyrocketed
“Protection of freedom of expression and combat censorship is a core part of our mission and we are committed to doing what we can to help people all over the world. Unfortunately, Turkey is such a country with a bad recent censorship history,” David Peterson, general manager of Proton VPN, told Techradar in a statement Friday.
The spikes in use have happened, despite the fact that Proton VPN is one of the 27 VPN providers limited in Turkey
This is not the first time Proton VPN has registered similar spikes in use in Turkey.
Only in 2024 did Proton VPN sign up with 1,400% in October and 4,500% in August in the middle of similar blocks on social media services. By 2023, citizens increasingly turned to Proton VPN. The company recorded a staggering increase of 15,000% in February after Twitter was blocked after a deadly earthquake and a 2,100% increase in May as citizens were preparing for potential blocks prior to the presidential election.
The spikes in the use have taken place, despite the fact that Proton VPN is one of 27 VPN providers limited in Turkey, along with NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark and others. Specifically, their official sites are blocked in the country.
“Because of this, many people – especially those who are not familiar with VPNs – had not heard of Proton VPN,” Turkish journalist Ali Safa Korkut told Techradar, explaining that the interest in the software grew after a Swiss provider’s tweet shared on March 22.
“I know people around me who use Proton VPN without any problems,” he added.
While access to social media was restored around 1am local time on Friday, internet censorship has not been completely stopped.
X blocked several accounts of political figures and students involved in the protests at the government’s request, along with journalists and independent news organizations such as Bianet.
Corks that carefully track these blocks from the beginning have counted 309 x accounts that are blocked so far. “These include well -known journalists with 1.5 million followers as well as anonymous accounts without any supporters,” he said, adding, “new accounts are blocked by the minute.”
Isik Mater, Director of Internet Guardian Research NetBlocks, explains that this trend is in line with previous cases where X complied with dismantling requests from the Turkish government and raises concerns about platform neutrality and freedom of expression.
She said to Techradar: “Access to social media is a fundamental pillar of freedom of expression and the right to information, especially in moments of political tension or crisis. Restrictions like these not only limit public discourse, but also undermine citizens’ ability to organize, communicate and stay informed during critical events.”
